Life After Boston
by mcangel1976
Summary: The club is back from Boston and changes are happening. Tamaki and Haruhi have broken up. How is this going to affect the club? What is Tamaki going to do? Is she destined to be with someone else in the club? The rest of the school year may just be the most awkward of their career. I have not decided on pairings yet, so if you have a suggestion, please let me know. R&R. Thank you.
1. Back Home and Letting Go

Disclaimer – I do not own OHSHC or its characters.

Chapter 1 – Back Home and Letting Go

The host club was finally home from Boston and they couldn't be happier to be back on Japanese soil. All seven members had decided to study in America for the majority of the current school year when Haruhi was offered the opportunity to study abroad. Tamaki and the others encouraged her to seize the opportunity, and she did. Tamaki had accompanied her and without the couple knowing, the others followed them a few days later. They were not going to be left behind. The members of the host club were friends and a family, and they would stay together. Plus let's face it… it annoyed Tamaki to no end that he would not have Haruhi all to himself. Now they were back where they belonged so that they could all finish out the term on their home turf, and Tamaki and Kyoya would have the opportunity to graduate from Ouran instead of a foreign school. It was what they wanted and nobody could blame them.

Haruhi had never been exactly sure how all of the hosts managed to gain permission to study in Boston with her, but she had learned long ago that with this group, you just nod your head and smile. If anyone could make things happen, it was this group; and so when she opened the door and found the five remaining hosts on her doorstep, she could only think, _"Damn rich bastards followed me. I can't get away from them." _

Thinking about her time in Boston with the group of men that had wormed their way into her heart and became her best friends, she couldn't help but chuckle to herself. They were a great group of men and she was proud and happy to be a part of their clique. She just hoped they would still want her around when everything changed. Sighing, Haruhi couldn't help but wonder if she was about to lose her most precious possession.

When Haruhi left for Boston, her relationship with Tamaki was so new. They were just discovering each other and what they meant to each other. They grew together in America and became closer. The whole group became closer due to their time in America. They could depend on each other. However lately she has been wondering if there isn't something more out there for her, and knew in her heart that Tamaki was not the end all be all for her. She loved him, but she wasn't in love with him and knew without a doubt that the love she felt for him was one she would feel for a brother and friend, not a lover. Tamaki Suoh would always be her first love and someone she would always hold dear, but he could never be anything more.

The more she thought about everything, the more Haruhi was convinced that her feelings about the relationship between her and Tamaki were reciprocated. She really believed that he felt the same way she did, but neither of them had taken the steps to end the relationship. Sometimes it was just hard to let go even when you know it is for the best.

Her decision made, Haruhi called Tamaki and asked him to meet her at the park so that they could talk. They had only been back in Japan for a couple of days, but she needed to do this before they went back to Ouran. He readily agreed to the meeting and told her that he would be there in an hour.

Tamaki knew exactly what Haruhi wanted to talk to him about. It had been coming for a while now and although he was sad, he knew they needed to separate. He thought back over the past few months and cringed a bit. They had grown apart as a couple and were more like good friends that held hands upon occasion. As a couple, they were not mean to be and Tamaki fervently hoped that Haruhi found that special someone that she could really love, and someone that would love her back wholeheartedly. She was a treasure and deserved to be cherished regardless of whom she was with.

As Tamaki made his way to the park, he wondered if one of the other hosts could be her perfect match. He had to think about this. It would be hard to see her paired with one of his best friends, but he also knew that they would take care of her and treat her like a princess. He could entrust her to them and know that he would not have to worry about her. If it was anyone else in the world, he would panic and wonder if she was being treated properly. No, another host would be the ideal setup. It was a blessed epiphany, and yet it was awkward at the same time.

When Tamaki got to the park, Haruhi was waiting for him on the swings. He looked around and found that the area was completely deserted of children. It made since because it was school hours, but it was an eerie site to behold for the host club king. He made his way to the small woman sitting on the swings waiting for him, and took a seat on the swing next to her, "Did you get all settled in again?"

Haruhi did not notice Tamaki's approach and so when she heard someone sit down and start talking to her, she jumped a little and turned wild eyes upon her boyfriend. "Huh? Oh yah, I did. It is going to feel weird being back at Ouran next week, and the fact our vacation breaks are different than they were in America," Haruhi finally replied.

"You're right," chuckled Tamaki.

They both quiet for a bit, each processing their own thoughts and feelings. Breaking the silence first, Haruhi said, "Tamaki, we need to talk about us."

"Ok, I am listening."

"I love you and I always will, but I am not in love with you. My feelings for you are as a friend, my best friend."

Tamaki nodded. He agreed with what she said because he felt the same way, but he couldn't voice his thoughts yet because as he looked at her, he noticed the scowl on her face. She was thinking and when she was like that, she did not like to be interrupted.

"Our relationship isn't growing, it has stopped and I think we have gone backwards. I appreciate all of the time we had together, but I don't think we can be more than friends," Haruhi stated bluntly as ever. She had been looking at him during her small speech and saw his periodic nods. Feeling a knot loosen in her stomach, she knew he was agreeing with her. She kept telling herself this was for the best and she knew it was, but it was hard to see a relationship that had been nurtured over the past year end like it did.

"You're right. I felt it while we were still in Boston," Tamaki started and offered Haruhi a small smile before he continued and said, "It is time. We have been holding onto this relationship because it is hard to let go of things sometimes. I am not going to say it doesn't hurt because it does. You were always special to me and I have always loved you, but I realized before we came home that I wasn't in love with you. In the beginning I used to dream of us getting married and having at least two kids, but now I can't see you standing by my side as my bride." Tamaki paused and took a deep breath; the ache in his heart was acute. "I hope that we can still be friends. I don't want to lose you. You have become one of my best friends and we are a family," Tamaki said softly thinking of the host club as a whole when he mentioned the last part.

Haruhi gave him a soft smile and leaned in to give him a brief kiss on his cheek, "Yes, we are a family and you are one of my best friends also; I don't want to lose you either. To be honest, I was preparing myself to let you completely go and cut you out of my life if that is what you wanted, but it would have hurt. Our friendship is too special to completely cut each other out of our lives."

Tamaki nodded. The ache was still there, but it had decreased and he felt free. The weight had been taken off of his shoulders, and he knew that they would continue in their friendship even though they could not continue their relationship. "I don't have any regrets about us," he whispered.

"I don't either," Haruhi stated just as softly.

The couple, or ex-couple, sat there in silence for another 30 minutes before they decided it was time to leave. Tamaki offered Haruhi a ride, but she declined saying that she wanted to walk. With one last hug and a kiss for each other's cheeks, they went their separate ways; and although they both felt better, almost lighter, there was a sadness left in their wake as well. Their romantic relationship was done, but at least they still had their friendship. Tamaki had been right, they were a family.

When he got home, Tamaki called Kyoya to tell him what had happened. He needed someone to talk to about his breakup and the shadow king, by some miracle, was his best friend. Spilling his guts, he told his friend everything that had happened.

Kyoya listened to Tamaki and said all of the right things at the right time as any best friend should, but he wasn't surprised at all by this turn of events. All of the hosts, sans the couple, had talked about the changes they had noticed in the relationship. Something had been different between them, and they all had a feeling that the connection was going to be severed sooner or later. Kyoya heard Tamaki stress that he did not want this to affect the host club, and that no one should choose sides because the breakup was mutual. Kyoya smirked: Tamaki was trying to make sure everyone was happy again.

"Please Kyoya? We are still friends, so it shouldn't affect the relationships between the others. This was for the best and we are not going to let it affect us. We are a family," Tamaki declared.

"Don't worry Tamaki, I am sure it will be fine and there is nothing to be concerned about. We will not choose sides. The host club members will be as close as we have always been," Kyoya assured him, but to himself he said,_ "I hope."_

Kyoya knew that although other hosts had backed off so that Tamaki could be with Haruhi, this turn of events could bring all of those feelings back to the surface, creating a new round of competition and jealousy. He believed it would definitely be interesting to see what happened next now that Haruhi was single and back on the market so to speak.

When Haruhi left the park, she had every intention of going home and started to stroll back to the apartment she shared with her father, but after walking half of a block, she decided she wasn't ready to go home to an empty place, not yet. She needed interaction and she didn't need to be alone right now. The first person or people that popped into her mind to visit were the twins. If anyone could keep her mind off of things, it was Hikaru and Kaoru; even if it meant (gulp) becoming their Barbie doll for the day.

When she arrived at the house (mansion), a butler answered the door and gave her a questioning look. Giving the man a smile, she said, "I am here to see Hikaru and Kaoru. Are they home?"

The butler knew who she was immediately since this was not the first time she had been to the house, and said, "Yes Haruhi-san. If you will wait in here, I will fetch them immediately." He ushered her into a room and left to complete his task.

Within a few minutes a ruckus could clearly be heard on the stairs and the twins came bursting into the room. Haruhi immediately looked up when the twins entered the room (*cough* threw themselves into more like *cough*). She tried to contain the mirth, but soon the laughter escaped and could not hold it in. They looked like they had just been woken up, thrown out of their beds, and were still half asleep. The way they tripped and fell over each other to get into the room did nothing but support her theory.

"What are you laughing at?" Hikaru asked from the floor.

"Nothing, nothing at all. Did I wake you?" Haruhi giggled.

"Well, if you must know, we were still sleeping," Kaoru grumbled.

Together the twins asked sarcastically, "Do you know what time it is?" They believed it was way too early to be woken up.

"I do, but the question is, do you? It is 1:30 in the afternoon and well past time to get out of bed," she stated. She watched her friends very carefully, they had not moved from their positions on the floor and it looked like they were trying to fall back asleep where they lay. Knowing she needed to do something fast, she bellowed, "Come on you two! Get up off the floor."

"Do we have to?" They groaned in unison.

"What are you doing here anyway?" Kaoru pouted sleepily.

"Don't you have to unpack or something? We know you don't have someone to do that for you," Hikaru moaned.

"I was done unpacking the day we got home, and I came here to hang out with you two, but if you don't want to do something with me I guess I can always find someone else to spend time with. Hmmm, I wonder who I can call…" she teased as she stood up from the couch knowing that would get them moving.

"No, wait! Just give us a minute! We're up, we're up. We will just go upstairs and change and then be right down. Ok?" Hikaru exclaimed while trying to get up off of the floor.

Haruhi took pity on them both and helped them maneuver into a standing position. She couldn't help the additional laughter that escaped though. They did look kind of pathetic.

The twins turned around and started to head upstairs when Kaoru turned around suddenly and asked, "Hey where is Tamaki? I would have thought you would be hanging out with him today."

"Go shower and change and I will explain everything when you get back. Try and wake up a bit too," Haruhi said with a wistful smile.

Hikaru and Kaoru rushed through their shower and got dressed. They knew something happened, but didn't know what it was. Hikaru turned to Kaoru and pondered, "Do you think the ax finally fell and they broke up?"

Kaoru's eyes widened, "We need to hurry." He and his brother rushed back downstairs to find Haruhi still in the same room, but now she was drinking some tea.

Haruhi turned towards the entrance of the room, and when the twins entered once again, the giggles escaped. They still looked a little disheveled, almost like they raced to get back, but at least they looked a bit more awake than they were previously. Smiling at her friends, she said, "Are you guys awake now?"

"Yah, a little bit. So want to tell us what is going on and where Tono is?" Kaoru inquired as he sat on one side of her. Hikaru took the other side while he nodded agreeing with his brother. He was curious too.

"There really isn't much to tell. We love each other, but have decided we love each other more as friends than anything else. We broke up today and then I came here. We have agreed that our friendship is too important to throw it away, so we are remaining friends. I just hope, and I know Tamaki agrees, that this will not affect the club. I love him, but I realized he wasn't 'the one'. Honestly, this has been coming for a long time. We both knew it was over with in Boston, but were trying to hold on to that small thread. Today we decided to let go. It is better this way and I actually feel better that we did break up. It's just that… it is still sad and hurts a little. I mean it doesn't hurt as much as I thought it would, but it still hurts. He was my first love and has been my boyfriend for the past year, so it feels weird to say that I am single and Tamaki isn't my boyfriend. He was safe and dependable, and maybe a little dramatic and crazy (OK A LOT)," she answered honestly.

Although Hikaru and Kaoru knew that this was eventually going to happen, they still felt bad that it had not worked out for their friends. Looking at each other and nodding, they silently decided that today their job would be to make sure that she was ok and had fun. It was their sworn duty as her closest friends.

Kaoru asked her, "So what do you want to do today? Our mother has a new line. You can try on clothes and I am sure we can let you keep some also." He winked at her with a mischievous grin plastered on his face.

Haruhi laughed and rolled her eyes at him. Some things would never change, and for that she was grateful.

Hikaru spoke next, "But first, let's go out to lunch and get something to eat. I'm hungry!" He turned his hunger stricken face to Haruhi and his brother and watched as they immediately agreed with his request. The limo was called and the three friends slipped into the back and were quickly on their way to get some food.

Haruhi knew that she could count on them today and they didn't disappoint her at all. Although she was still trying to figure out if there was anything else they could do together beside a fashion filled afternoon. She still couldn't see the allure that it held for them, but decided that is why they were the sons of a fashion mogul and she wasn't.

As they pulled up to the restaurant, everyone received a text message from Kyoya, "Host club meeting tomorrow at noon. Music room 3. Attendance is mandatory."

Looking at the message on her phone, she could only guess what this was going to be about. Haruhi really hoped that no one was going to make a big deal about this. The last thing she wanted was a fuss, but knew she would have to wait until the meeting to figure out what Kyoya was up to. Groaning, she muttered under her breath, "Great, this is just what I need."


	2. Meeting of Minds or Is It Just Gossip

Disclaimer…. I do not own OHSHC or its characters. Would be fun if I did, but I am happy to use them in my fan fiction.

**A/N: Thank you for reading this story. I hope you are enjoying it. I still not have decided on pairing, so if you have a suggestion or request, please let me know. As always, I love reviews (both good and bad) so if you have time, please let me know what you think. Thank you everyone.**

Chapter 2 – A Meeting of Minds or Is It Just Gossip

At noon the next day, all members had arrived in music room 3 in order to get their mandatory meeting started, well everyone except Haruhi. As per her norm, she was running a little late to host club and did not arrive until 12:07 pm, much to the displeasure of Kyoya, "Haruhi, the meeting was supposed to start at noon and not a minute after. You are officially late and if you had a debt, it would have cost you." Pushing up his glasses and creating a glare, he tried to intimidate the only female host in the club.

Haruhi growled internally as she kept telling herself that was just how Kyoya was and that she should be a lady and not slap him silly. Most of the time his attitude could grate on her nerves, but today, it seemed that not only was it getting on her nerves, it was pushing her a little further than that. Taking a deep breath to calm herself a little, she finally grumbled, "Sorry Senpai but the train was running late and I have no control over the timing of those things, but I got here as fast as I could. What is this meeting about anyway? I thought we were taking the week off." She plopped herself into a chair next to Tamaki and waited to see what the shadow king had up his sleeves.

"This meeting is to discuss a couple of different things actually: when do we want to re-open the club, what do we want to have as our first theme, the break-up of you and Tamaki, what do we want to do for graduation, and the future of the club going into next year," Kyoya read off his itinerary nonchalantly as if he didn't have a care in the world, and didn't just put two of his closest friends on the list.

"WHAT?" Everyone yelled after he was finished recovering from the shock of what they just heard. After hearing the words break-up come out of his mouth, no one could say what else was on the list since they had effectively tuned Kyoya out after that.

"Which topic did you not understand?" Kyoya played dumb, but he knew what everyone was up in arms about.

"Kyoya how could you? I can't believe that you put the ending of mine and Haruhi's relationship on the agenda! I thought you said this would not change anything and that hosts would not have to choose sides. What are you doing? Do you want to start something?" Tamaki said getting louder and more dramatic as he continued.

Adjusting his glasses once again, Kyoya stated, "We are discussing it to get it out in the open and make sure that it isn't going to cause problems. As you have stated, more times than I care to count, we are a family and as such, things that could possibly affect the club need to be addressed and discussed. Therefore any issues or concerns that anybody in the club has, needs to be discussed now instead of when we are hosting our customers. I would rather make sure everything is ok now than wait and find out there are problems later. Now if you have issue with that, we will discuss it at the next meeting because this meeting's itinerary is full. Now, since that is the current topic of discussion, let's start with that. As you are now aware, if you did not know before, Haruhi and Tamaki are no longer a couple. They had an amiable break-up and have decided to remain friends. I wanted to be sure that there were no concerns in regards to the break-up and how it will affect the club."

Haruhi knew Kyoya had a point, but that didn't mean that she had to like it; it was quite the opposite in fact. What or who gave him the right to discuss her love life? She almost felt like the club had a say in the person she could and could not date, and if they could break up. She knew that she didn't need to have this attitude, but it was hard not to at that moment in time. Leering at Kyoya, she was willing to bet that the real reason the meeting was called was to discuss the new relationship status between she and Tamaki, and he probably only threw in the rest of the items to save time later. Haruhi was fuming. _"Next time I will not date a host. It is nothing but trouble in the end," _she thought to herself. Unable to hold herself back, she glared at Kyoya, "Yes, we did break-up, but we are still friends. How does it affect you if we are ok around each other? I mean hell, we are sitting right next to each other, we hugged when I walked in, and we even talked on the phone last night for a short time."

Kyoya raised one of his eye brows at her speech, "It affects us if there is any kind of unresolved issues or problems between you two. I can see that right now you both appear to be fine with everything, but I have to wonder if it is real or an act. I don't want to open up the wound if it is still hurting, but we are going to be opening up the host club to our clients next week, and I don't want an air of tension to surround us. You know as well as I do, our customers can pick up on the subtle problems we have and I don't any issues for them."

The more Kyoya talked, the more pissed off Haruhi got. Half standing up out of her chair suddenly, she noticed that Tamaki backed away. He knew how she could get when she was angry, and it was a smart move on his part. Focusing her heated gaze on the shadow king, she ground out, "I can assure you that there was more tension before we started dating and he kept calling me his daughter, or how about when the twins wanted to call me their toy, or lest we forget when I had a debt and you being the ass that you are, kept adding to it. Does it hurt that we are no longer together? Yes, it does. What do you expect when something you had in your life for over a year comes to an end? We are actually ok with it though because we knew it was time, and the fact that we were able to part as friends should say something. Now if you are quite done, I believe we can move onto the next topic." By the time that Haruhi had finished yelling at Kyoya, she was completely standing and hunched over the table to give the shadow king an evil look that could rival his.

Not one to be outdone by a mere commoner, he also stood to his full height and was giving her an evil look using the glare on his glasses to his advantage. Leering at Haruhi, he inquired, "So are you perfectly sure that this was what both parties wanted? Then let me ask you this, why did Tamaki call me yesterday crying about the break-up?"

The other host members were watching this exchange like a tennis match, but no one wanted to interrupt because no one interrupted the "friendly" argument. It was like a train wreck they could not turn away from; however, upon Kyoya's last question, everyone gasp and all eyes were immediately on Tamaki. Could it be that he really did not want to breakup with the host club princess?

Tamaki looked shocked that his best friend would say something like that. His face was read and he was sputtering, but finally he was able to screech, "Kyoya! That was uncalled for!"

"Is it true Tamaki? Did you not want to break-up? I thought we agreed that we had grown apart and this was for the best," Haruhi asked confused. She never wanted to hurt Tamaki, but she really believed that when they broke up, he had known that it was the right thing to do.

Tamaki turned and looked at her with compassion in his eyes and gently said, "No, it is what we needed to do for us. You were right, we had grown apart; but as you also said, it hurts to let go of something you have had in your life for so long. I truly am ok, and was only talking to him to let him know what happened because I was worried about the club and what could possibly happen to our family."

"Are you sure? I never mean to hurt you, but I know that if we stayed together, both of us would wind up hurt in the end."

Tamaki stood up and took her hand in his, "You are one of my best friends and my first real love, I will cherish our time together, however, what we had is in the past. We cannot be together now because we were not meant to be each other's forever love. I will always love you, but only now as a friend and maybe as Daddy." Finishing his little declaration with a wink and a smile, the tension was broken and everyone started to laugh. The three debaters sat back down in order to resume the meeting, and Tamaki thought to himself, _"Hmmm I wonder if Kyoya could be the one for her. They definitely would have a passion between each other, but they might kill each other before their first date. It is too soon to be thinking about this stuff any way. I mean we just broke up."_

Clearing his throat, Kyoya stated, "Well, I think that has been settled for now, that is unless someone else has something to say on the matter." A quick glance around the table told him no one wanted to say anything right now.

Everyone remained quiet, but they wondered, _"They seem to be ok with the break-up, but are they really? Maybe time would tell what their true feelings are."_

"No? Good, then we can move on with the next item on the agenda: when do we want to open the club doors to our clients again?" Kyoya continued the meeting the same way he always had, efficiently. By the end of two hours, they had all of the topics on the itinerary discussed and the decisions made. They would open Tuesday of next week in order to allow everyone to get back into the swing of things in school, however, they would convene Monday afternoon in the club room to review any problems and discuss last minute items. The meeting was finally adjourned.


	3. School Starts Again

Disclaimer… I still don't own OHSHC or its characters, but I can wish and dream. LOL.

**A/N… Thank you Ashlyn Braere and Like-for-like for giving me your choices for the pairing! Love the feedback and ideas. Everyone, if you have an idea for a pairing that you would like to see, let me know. I am still in the decision making process on that. I love reviews from my readers. Hope everyone is enjoying the story, now on with the next chapter. **

Chapter 3 – School Starts Again

The rest of their week off went by. Haruhi hung out with the twins a bit, but other than that, did not have much contact with the club besides some calls and texts here and there from the other members. She did wonder if hanging out with the twins was the smart thing to do. She knew that at one point Hikaru had strong feelings for her and Kaoru had feelings also. She didn't want the feelings to start or come back up again, but she was grateful that they wanted to hang out when she was feeling down or worried about starting school again. She wasn't ready for anything with anyone yet. She just got out of a relationship.

Monday morning, Haruhi got up and ready for school. Now that she was back at Ouran, she was going to be wearing the girl uniform. Her gender came out at the Ouran Fair at the end of her first year and when she got back, she decided to wear the yellow poufy dress that the other girls wore. As she got ready, she wondered how this day was going to go. She was a bit apprehensive about how the day was going to progress. There was nothing else to do, but to take a deep breath and face it head on.

She walked out of her apartment and ready to walk to the train station to head to school when she noticed a black limo sitting out front of the apartment. As she descended the stairs, the driver got out of the car and opened the back door. Inside she saw all of the members of the host club, including Mori-Senpai and Hunny-Senpai. She got in after a moment's hesitation and gave everyone a questioning look, "Ok, what is going on? Why am I being picked up?"

"We felt that on our first day back, it would be a good idea for the club to show up together at school. We have been gone for the majority of the year. This will help to announce to the school that we are all back and ready to host again. Plus, this will be your first day in the girl's uniform. It will show that you have the backing of the host club," Kyoya spoke like it should have been obvious to her.

"Oh ok, if you say so. I am not sure why I need the backing of the club since they have known I was a girl since the Ouran Fair. I have seen my customers since then and they are fine. If you remember correctly, we have already told them all," she retorted and then she turned to the two most senior members of the club, "Hunny-Senpai, Mori-Senpai, why are you here. Don't you have school at the university today?"

"We are just making sure that everything is still ok and that everyone knows that the hosts are back," Tamaki said. He was thinking about how difficult she could be sometimes.

"Takashi and I are coming this morning for the reasons Kyo-Chan and Tama-Chan already stated. Plus we will be in club every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Our schedules at university allow us to still be part of the club this semester, so we want to be able to still be with our customers. We have missed them," Hunni-Senpai said simply. Haruhi looked to Mori-Senpai and he just nodded saying that he agreed with his cousin.

Haruhi rolled her eyes and shook her head. She never really understood this group, but she would go along with what they said. She was actually grateful that they were all going to walk in there together the first day. She was sure that dressing as a girl and going to school as her true gender would be okay. She was more nervous about starting back to school when she had been gone for a while and how the day would go with Tamaki. She was still worried that he went along with the break-up because that is what she wanted and not necessarily what he wanted.

The limo pulled up to the school and a crowd was gathered. She wondered what was going on. Kyoya, being the mind reader that he is said, "They are waiting on us. They know that we will be back today and are waiting for the club to make their appearance. This is why we picked you up so that we could all walk in together." Haruhi just nodded showing she understood.

When the limo stopped, she took a deep breath and when the limo door opened, the guys got out of the car first and then Mori-Senpai turned back to the car and offered her his hand to help her out. She placed her hand in his blushing and got out of the car. Before he let her go, he squeezed her hand causing her to blush more. She wasn't sure why she was blushing, but it wasn't something that she could control.

As soon as the host club members started to get out of the car, the girls started to scream and yell trying to get their favorite hosts' attention. With each member that got out of the car, the noise grew and by the time Haruhi got out of the car, it was deafening. She still didn't understand why the girls went so crazy, but she was used to it now. She knew the guys were great and she loved them all, they were her best friends, but she didn't understand how the girls went so crazy for the acts. She just smiled her natural host smile and waved at the crowd. The guys were smiling and putting on their acts also. They were making the girls faint right and left. It was apparent, the club was not forgotten and it was very much missed.

The club had arrived at the school almost an hour early and it took them 45 minutes of that hour to get inside and to their classes. Hunny and Mori followed the second years to their rooms and then headed back to the limo to go to their classes for the morning. Everyone in the class was abuzz about the hosts being back and many girls walked up to them in the time before class started. It took all of their sensei throughout the day a few minutes before they could get control of their classes. The sensei knew that it would be pandemonium today. They knew how popular the host club was and what it did when they left to study abroad.

Everyone made it through the day without much incident. There were a lot of questions asked about Boston and what was it like studying in America. People also asked Haruhi about her and Tamaki since everyone knew that they were together before they left. She calmly explained that they were just friends and this caused the girls to try to coddle her in, as they called it, "her moment of heartbreak". She tried to explain that she wasn't heartbroken, but they wouldn't listen. She could only groan and face palm. She forgot how once the girls got an idea in their head, they would take it to heart and it was nearly impossible to get them to change their minds.

Classes were finally over and the three second years walked together to music room three. They were currently being followed by a crowd, most of the crowd was made up of girls, but there were a couple of boys that wanted to be close the female host. The twins were sticking close to their friend. When they made it to the club room, they opened the door and the three turned around and waived to the crowd before disappearing inside the room. As soon as they stepped inside the room, they realized that Hunny-Senpai and Mori-Senpai were the only other members that were there. A few minutes later, they heard the noise from the crowd grow and soon Kyoya and Tamaki came into the room and shut the door.

"My fans missed me. They still want me. It does a man's heart good to know that he is loved and wanted." Tamaki was being his normal host club dramatic self and he didn't have any customers today.

Kyoya rolled his eyes at the king and shook his head, "Yes, it would seem that our absence from the school has increased our popularity. This could be very profitable for us. We still need to decide what to do next year, but we may want to continue the club, based on the desire of our customers." Everyone shook their head at him, just like the Shadow King to think of profit. They all wondered if he thought of anything else.

Haruhi went back to the kitchen to start making tea for the club while everyone else took their places around the center sitting area so that they could carry on their meeting. Tomorrow would come soon enough and then they would have customers, but today it was just them and they could still relax a little bit. She looked up when she heard someone come into the kitchen and saw Tamaki step in. "Did you need something Tamaki? Do I need to go back to calling you Senpai?"

"Huh? Oh, no you can keep the Senpai off. We are too close for that. It would be weird for you to call me that after all this time. I was just checking on you and to see if you wanted help."

"I am ok. It was weird being back and I wasn't expecting all of the excitement or the crowds, but it wasn't too bad and more shocking than anything. Everyone was really nice and it seems that all of our customers missed us. As for the tea, it's almost done. How was your day?"

"It was good. I was surprised also, but it felt good that they were so excited about the club being back. It shows that we really make a difference and the club is needed here." He had the biggest smile on his face. It had been a while since she had seen that smile and knew in that moment that he was alright.

"Wonderful. Well, the tea is ready. Shall we join the rest of the club?" She grabbed the tray with the tea pots and he grabbed a tray with tea cups. Mori-Senpai had been in earlier and got the cake out for Hunny-Senpai so they did not grab any snacks.

When they came out, everyone looked up to see the step out of the kitchen with smiles on their faces. The other hosts wondered what the smiles were for, and the question popped into everyone's minds, "Did they get back together? They look really happy."

Hunny-Senpai took the initiative, "Haru-Chan, why are you so happy?"

Haruhi blushed again and giggled a little, "Nothing Hunny-Senpai. We were just talking about our day and the excitement of the girls. Nothing more, we didn't know that they were going to be so enthusiastic." She put the tea down and then took a seat a few seats away from Tamaki.

The five other hosts mentally wiped their foreheads. They weren't sure why, but they knew that they did not want the two to get back together. If they were not in love, it would have been stupid to get back together after a week.

As a group they discussed the final plan for the next day and for the rest of the week. Then then they worked on whatever they wanted to for the rest of the time they were there. No one was ready to fight the crowd and leave the room just yet. So everyone unconsciously made the decision to stay longer than they would have on a normal non-club day.

Overall it had been a good day. Everyone was excited that the club was home from Boston and back at Ouran. They were ecstatic that the club would be opening again and everyone would be able to see their favorite host once again. As one customer put it, "there was a hole that no other club could fill and the wait for the club to return was long but worth the wait." Tomorrow the wait would be over.


	4. The Host Club Is Once Again Open

Disclaimer…. As much as I may want to, I do not own Ouran or its characters.

**A/N: There is still time for you to put in your vote/opinion on who you would like to see as the couple in this story. All 6 male hosts are fair game. Yes, I did say 6. Thank you for reading, if you have a chance to review, please do. I love all reviews, good and bad. Now on with chapter 4 and the first day of hosting. This should be interesting. **

Chapter 4 – The Host Club Is Once Again Open for Business

The next day's classes past by in a haze of excitement because everyone knew that the host club was once again open for business that day. Everyone wanted to talk to the hosts and hear about their adventures in Boston. They also wanted to be able to spend time with their designated host once again. No one was immune to the excited feelings and that included the guys. Kyoya was already filling up Haruhi's schedule with a bevy of gentlemen and a few of her previous regulars. Some of her old customers decided to move onto another host and push their fantasies on someone else. It was hard to imagine getting married and having babies with Haruhi when she was a girl. The fantasy just didn't fit.

The host club members all rushed to the third music room to get ready for the customers. A crowd was following them like the previous day. No one wanted to wait any longer for the hosts to open the doors and invite them in. As the three second years entered the room, they noticed that Kyoya and Tamaki were already there and in their costume. Today they would be cosplaying as American teenagers to give them a taste of what they experienced in Boston. Haruhi had rolled her eyes at the idea because there wasn't really much different between there and what they normally wore as street clothes here, but she didn't argue.

"Hurry up and change into your costumes for the day you three. We are going to try to open the club a little early due to the crowd that is forming outside." Kyoya said without looking up from his laptop. The three ran to the back and started to change in the curtained off rooms.

The twins were done first and Haruhi followed soon after, but she was having a hard time with her necklace and asked the first person that she saw to help her with it, "Hikaru, can you help me with this. For some reason, I can't get it to hook."

Hikaru nodded and helped her to latch the necklace. His hands lingered on her neck and shoulders. Haruhi noticed and started to blush again. She didn't understand why all of the sudden, she was blushing at the simplest and normal things (at least normal for her as part of this group of men), "Umm, thank you." She pulled away and started to go to her opening mark.

"You're welcome," Hikaru responded quietly following her. If he stared at the way she walked and kept his eyes on her, he didn't realize it, but at least one other did. His younger twin asked him why he was blushing. He just shook his head that it was nothing and got in place. Everyone was ready to go and host club was opening 30 minutes early.

Hunny and Mori's customers knew that they would not be able to attend host club that day, but they came anyway. They wanted to see the club and spend time listening to everyone. It was a thrill they could not wait for and decided not to put off visiting. They would be back tomorrow for their favorite hosts, but until then, the group broke up and found other hosts to entertain them for the day.

The host club was full to capacity with customers. Regular customers returned to the host club happy to have them back. New customers came to see what everything was about (most of the first years had only heard about the club and never experienced it). The host club also saw a high number of customers that had previously graduated with the two older members. They were attending to welcome back the club on their first day back. The number of customers today exceeded any record set in the past for the club and had the hosts jumping to make sure all of their customers were taken care of.

Haruhi paused a moment and thought, "This should make Kyoya-senpai happy. Damn bastard." She was smiling to herself as she thought it. The smile caught the attention of her customers and they asked what she was thinking about, "Nothing, just that it is good to be back at Ouran with our friends and have the Host Club open again." Her customers loved her answer. They felt it was directed at them and them alone.

The Natural host's smile also caught the attention of one other person, a fellow host and he wondered what that smile was about also. She looked almost dreamy when she was thinking. Kyoya was curious and when he was curious, he had to find answers. It was just a part of who he was, but right now, he had to host. Since they were so busy, he had a crowd around him also.

Everyone was asking questions about America and going to school there. What did they like most and what did they hate. Which school did they like to attend more, Boston or Ouran? Of course, they answered Ouran. Although all of the hosts came back with special memories and had a wonderful time, nothing would ever compare to home. Japan and Ouran were home to them. "One day they would graduate and they could find themselves all over the world, but you always have to have a place to come back to and right now, this was that place for everyone in the club," Tamaki said dramatically when one of his customers asked what he would do when he graduated and Ouran wasn't his home any longer. After his speech, he produced a rose for the girl and said, "I will always have to come back to my beautiful princesses and make sure that they are happy." He winked and it sent his customers into a squealing frenzy. The girl who asked the question took the rose and then fainted. Apparently the hosts had not lost their touch.

The absence of the two older hosts was felt not only by the customers, but the club as well. It was different and felt off when everyone was not there. Haruhi wondered what they were doing right now and if they were thinking about the club. She brushed off her thoughts quickly though saying to herself, "Of course they aren't, they are busy with class right now and probably don't realize what time it is." She sighed and gave her attention back to her customers.

Tamaki had glanced around the room and noticed the look of longing on Haruhi's face. He wondered what that look was for and going into "daddy" mode, he walked over to her area and decided to ask, "Haruhi, are you ok?"

"Huh, oh yah I am fine Tamaki. I am just enjoying the company of everyone here. It is good to be back. It just seems weird that it is our first day open and Mori-Senpai and Hunny-Senpai couldn't be here today. I wish we could have all been here on our first day, but they have classes. At least they will be here tomorrow and the host club will be complete," she said with a smile. Her crowd melted and so did Tamaki.

"Don't worry by darling daughter; we will make sure we will always be together as a family." Tamaki was back to his old self and everyone loved it. She didn't know if he knew what he was talking about, but it made her feel good that he was determined to make sure that they were always together. She loved her friends and didn't want to lose any of them. She gave him a bigger smile and he pulled her off the couch and into a hug, "You are just so cute sometimes!"

She laughed and shook her head at him. Sometimes he was such an idiot. "Ok, Tamaki, go back to your area. I am busy here."

Tamaki walked off amid a chorus of screaming girls talking about how that was so sweet. The girls were thinking that it was wonderful that they are not letting their broken hearts get in the way of the club or their friendship. They thought it was so noble of both of them and such a sacrifice. The boys wondered if they were truly broken up and if so, did they have a chance to woo the female host? They were afraid to make a move though since there were six very powerful young men in the host club with her. It would not be an easy feat and would probably be worse than a protective parent or sibling.

They didn't know right they truly were. All of the hosts were protective of the only female member and would do anything for her, and all of them had feelings for her. Feelings were surfacing, some old and some new, but they were there and Haruhi had no idea what she was bringing out in the other hosts. The rest of the school year could prove to be very interesting for everyone involved. When there are seven hearts involved, complications will be in abundance.


	5. A Trick, A Request, and An Apology

Disclaimer…. (I really should just do a blanket disclaimer. LOL). I don't own OHSHC or any of its characters. I will use them for my fan fiction and for the enjoyment of my readers though.

Chapter 5 – A Trick, A Request, and An Apology

The rest of the week passed by without much incident, there was the normal drama from Tamaki, while he once again putting on his daddy mantle now that he and Haruhi were no longer together and the twins acting like the devilish trouble-makers they were. For Tamaki, it was what he knew and felt comfortable with now that he wasn't the significant other in Haruhi's life. It was easy and helped him cope. She put up with it because she knew he needed to define himself some way in her life and for some reason, friend didn't always work for him. As for the twins, well they were her best friends and it was almost like they couldn't help themselves, or didn't want to.

The pentacle of the week happened on Friday, when the mischievous twins decided to put black cat firecrackers in Tamaki's locker and rigged it so that they exploded when the poor king opened the door. It caused a frenzy in the whole school and nearly gave their senior a heart attack. At least that is what he told everyone to get their sympathy. In club that day, Tamaki walked up to Haruhi as she walked in the door before club opened and told her about the day's events, "They were trying to kill me. What are we going to do about those doppelgangers? I just don't know if my heart can take it any longer." He had pulled her into his arms and was crushing her, pretending to cry on her shoulder. "My daughter, you need to comfort me in my time of weakness and fear."

She couldn't breathe and she couldn't break free. Her saving grace was when she heard the doors open. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mori-Senpai and Hunny-Senpai walk into the room and look in her direction. She couldn't talk, but her eyes pleaded with the tallest host to help free her from Tamaki's deadly grasp. Mori walked over and easily extracted her from the crushing embrace, "Thank you Mori-Senpai. I needed that. As for you Tamaki, get a grip. It was a nearly harmless joke that happened this morning and the nurse said you were fine. I am sure they will be punished and Kyoya-Senpai will help." Mori-Senpai patted her head when she had thanked him and walked off to help his cousin while Tamaki went to his corner of woe upon realizing that his "daughter" was not going to sympathize with him.

When Kyoya heard Tamaki start his rant, he was listening to everything that was being said and he heard what Haruhi had said about the twins' punishment. In truth the school would probably not do much to them, and he knew that. Why did she think he would do something though? Yes, he had something planned, but that didn't mean he shared anything with anyone else, "Haruhi, what makes you think I am going to help punish them? We need them for the host club since their act brings in a lot of customers. I may have too much on my plate to deal with this minor infraction towards Tamaki."

She turned to look at him, "Because he is your best friend and even you think they went a bit too far." She walked up to him and said in a lower tone so that no one else could hear, "I know you have something up your sleeve to give them a taste of their own medicine. I saw your eye twitch this morning when you had seen what they had done. Now, if you want help, count me in." She winked at him and walked off. He was stunned at her boldness and offer of help. As she walked off and he stared at her swaying hips, he could only think, "She has changed a lot since he first met her." He could not find fault with any of the changes though, they just made her more endearing than she was before. He smirked to himself and went back to his computer. He would have to see what he could do to include her in his plans.

She walked up to Tamaki and told him to get out of his corner and get ready to host. This was always the thing that got on her nerves more than anything else about him: the pouting and the drama. If he didn't get his way or he thought she was too harsh when she talked to him, he would sulk in the corner. (He had a very extensive fungi collection.) It was always extremes with him. For example, she had to study for finals and he wanted to go out to the movies. She told him to go out with the other hosts because she had to study. Her final was the next day. He pouted and sulked the rest of the night. Unfortunately for her, he did it in her apartment. She finally had to go to Kyoya-Senpai's room so that she could study. So not only did she have to deal with a sullen boyfriend, she had to deal with a cranky Shadow King. It was not a fun night. Which brings us back to now, he was sulking because she didn't have more of a reaction to what happened to him. He never could quite grasp the fact that she was never really that over the top with her reactions to anything. She would show emotion, but never really went to the extreme like he did. She believed that was one of the problems in their relationship. She needed someone that would understand her more and accept her. She didn't feel like Tamaki completely did that. She thought he tried, but didn't really get it.

She walked over to Hunny and Mori to say hi since she really didn't get the chance when Mori had saved her from the overzealous Host Club King, "Hi Mori-Senpai, and Hunny-Senpai!"

"Haru-Chan! Come have some cake with us. We have fresh strawberries for them," Hunny said when she came over. He was always ecstatic about cake.

She looked at Mori-Senpai and he gave her a small smile and pulled out a chair for her. A small blush again appeared on her face. She sat down and took the offered slice of cake with extra strawberries, "Thank you. How have your classes been? Do you like them? I am glad you are able to still come to club. It is always better when everyone is here."

Hunny gave her a small smile, "They are great Haru-chan. I like being able to set my schedule, but Takashi and I aren't in a lot of classes together. Some, but not all," he was sticking out his bottom lip showing his pouty face at not having all of the same classes with his cousin. "We love coming here though. It is a break and we get to see our closest friends. Haru-Chan you look so cute in the girl uniform. Doesn't she Takashi?"

"Yah, she does." His tall stoic cousin responded. He was looking at her and he thought she looked more beautiful than cute especially with the blush that she was sporting on her face, but he would keep that thought to himself, at least for now. "What was that about?"

She knew that he was asking about the Tamaki situation, so she explained the whole mess to both men. When she was finished, Mori was smirking and Hunny was laughing while holding his stomach, "It sounded like machine gun fire and Tamaki was freaking out. He wound up on the floor in a dead faint. The twins went overboard with this one." The other two nodded their heads agreeing with that statement. She was about to say more to them, but Kyoya told them that doors would be opening soon and to get in place. The twins were still not present. She figured they were still in trouble and may or may not be in club that day. The three got up to take positions for the opening of the club.

The evil twins, as Tamaki was calling them, showed up to the club room 30 minutes after opening. They had to finish up their punishment for the day, but that didn't mean the punishment was completed. Unknown to them, they still had to contend with a secondary punishment, "Ladies sorry we are late, we ran into a bit of a snag on our way here." They said together. Everyone in the school knew what happened, so the customers just giggled about the "snag". "Don't worry ladies, I protected my Kaoru and was strong for him. When he cried, I kissed the tears away," Hikaru said pulling his brother into an embrace.

"Hikaru, please don't tell them what happened. I am just happy I am in your arms now." Kaoru finished looking deeply into his brother's eyes. The girls around them were eating it up and yelling "Moe". Their customers loved the act and could not get enough of it. Some girls started to cry at the display and others fainted. Haruhi upon seeing all of this just rolled her eyes and gave her attention back to her customers.

"Haruhi-Chan…" One of her new customers said to get her attention.

She looked at him with her natural host smile and acknowledged him, "Yes, Akio?" He just started to come to the host club when it had re-opened. He was the heir to a manufacturing company was in class 2-B. She had seen him around school, but other than the club, she really had no interaction with him.

He wanted to ask her out, but decided against asking her while hosting a crowd of others, "Do you have plans for the weekend?" He had to ask something, so may as well fish for some information while he waited for the end of club.

"Yes, actually I do," she said with a smile. "I think the hosts are doing something together tomorrow. Tamaki calls it family time. And then on Sunday, I will be doing my chores and shopping for the week. What about all of you? Do you have big plans for the weekend?" She was very good at redirecting the conversation back to her customers. She had learned it was best to do that many times when she had been pretending to be a boy, otherwise there were too many chances at girls asking the wrong questions or a slip happening. She looked at Akio and noticed he looked at her very intensely. She wondered what was on his mind and had to question if he had feelings for her. She wasn't as oblivious as she once was thanks to Tamaki and the other hosts. She had seen that look before.

"My family is having a garden party Sunday," Akio said looking directly at her with a quick disappointed look, but no one seemed to notice the look that passed over his face. Others joined in the conversation and soon everyone in the group was talking about their plans for the weekend.

Soon enough Kyoya spoke up that the club was closed for the week and would be open again next week, "We hope to see all of you gentlemen and beautiful princesses then. Thank you for coming and giving us a welcome home we will never forget."

"Always the businessman," Haruhi thought as she stood up to bid farewell to her guests. Akio was the last guest and asked if he could have a moment of her time. She nodded to the affirmative. She figured it was best to get this out of the way now instead of dragging it out. She hoped that he would not take offense or leave the club as a customer, but she would understand if he did. She truly liked talking to him, but that is where it ended.

"Haruhi-Chan, I was wondering if you would like to go out with me sometime or accompany me to the garden party on Sunday." He looked so nervous and hopeful.

She hated to say no, but she knew that she had to for a couple of reasons. First, she had just gotten out of a very serious  
relationship with someone and was not ready to date. Second, she didn't think of Akio like that and did not have any feelings for him of the romantic nature. "I'm sorry, but I can't. You seem like a nice guy Akio, but I am not ready for a relationship with anyone right now and I don't feel like that about you. I would like to be friends and get to know you more, but it would remain as friends." She flinched when she saw the dejected look on his face.

"I see. Is it because I am not from as family as rich and powerful as the ones in this club?" He lashed out. He was hurt and didn't mean it, but he wanted to hurt her like she had just hurt him.

"What? No, that is not it at all. I am a commoner and I don't care about all of that. The men in this club are my best friends and that is it. I know you are hurt, but you need to stop before you say something else you will regret."

The other hosts had seen the lingering guest with Haruhi and when he raised his voice a bit, they all started to move forward. Akio had seen the movement and immediately regretted his outburst, "I'm sorry. You are right. You were just being honest with me. I am sorry if my advances made you uncomfortable."

"It is ok. I hope you will still come to the Host Club, but maybe you need to take a break." Haruhi still had not seen the other hosts advancing.

"I don't know if I will, but maybe. Good-bye Haruhi-Chan," he bowed and walked out the door quickly before the other hosts got too close. He was afraid of them and what they could do to him. Not only to him, but he knew that their families could do something to his own. He was not willing to risk that at this time. Still it was loss he felt when she had said no. He was sure if she had said yes, he would have nothing to fear from the others, but they would not appreciate threats and yelling at their host club princess/daughter as she was called. He was thinking as he made his way out of the school that if he came back, she could get to know him and then maybe feelings would develop. It was a long shot, but it was a possibility. He had some thinking to do this weekend. Afraid of what the hosts would do to him, he did not take his time leaving and got into his car quickly.

"Are you ok Haru-Chan?" Hunny-Senpai asked. He had heard the guest raise his voice at Haruhi. He also saw Takashi's reaction to the situation: he had stood up quickly and started moving forward before anyone else could. He looked like he was ready to pounce if Akio said anything else mean to the girl or raised his voice again. He had never seen that look on his cousin's face before. Hunny didn't like how Akio had talked to Haruhi either, but knew that with the six of them there, she would be ok. He knew that he hadn't needed to run over there immediately, but got up and started moving forward to make sure Takashi didn't do anything too soon.

"Huh? Yah I am fine Hunny-Senpai. Akio was just upset because I turned him down for a date." She said flatly.

Tamaki, Hikaru, Kaoru, and Hunny all gasped were shocked that one of her male customers would dare ask her out. Mori remained stoic and didn't show a reaction. Kyoya wasn't surprised at all. She was a beautiful young lady who was smart, had common sense, and knew how to charm all of the people around her. She was popular with men in middle school, and so it only made sense that now that she was considered a female in high school the men would flock to her once again. This of course didn't mean that he had to like it.

When she saw their reactions, it irritated her. "What is your problem? I am not ugly and unlike some of you, some men find it ok that I am a commoner. I am not a hag and I don't know why you would find it impossible that someone would want to be with me! I mean hell; Tamaki dated me for over a year! Or was I just a charity case or a novelty to you?" She had the wrong idea about why they were surprised and her thoughts led her feelings to be hurt. "Bakas! I am going home, you can clean up the room yourselves," she stormed out the door to begin her journey back to her empty apartment.

After she left, the four members who showed their reaction to the declaration, felt ashamed. All of the hosts looked at each other with a look that said 'what are we going to do now'. Kyoya spoke up, "I suggest that we clean up the room and then all go over to her apartment and explain things to her. I also recommend picking up dinner as a peace offering. I know her father is working late tonight."

The other hosts agreed and made quick work of tidying the room. They gathered their things and were out the door in about 40 minutes. They picked up sushi for dinner, remembering to get extra fancy tuna for Haruhi, and were knocking on her door shortly afterwards.

She had not been home more than ten minutes when there was a knock on her door. She wondered who that could be and went to answer it regretting opening the door when she saw the six men on the other side, "What do you want?"

"Haruhi, we are sorry. We didn't mean it the way you took it. You over reacted." Tamaki said as his way of explaining things. It just wasn't very good.

The others cringed when they heard the words that left his mouth. A joint thought all went through their minds, "You never tell an upset woman that she is over reacting. That is just suicide!" A group groan and face palm occurred before Mori pulled Tamaki out of the line of fire. Haruhi's eye was twitching. Actually her whole body had started to twitch and if he was not moved quickly, Tamaki may have been hit. He knew that Haruhi would regret hitting her ex, but that did not mean that she would not do it. Tamaki had made himself an easy target.

"Excuse me? I am over reacting?! Oh that is rich coming from the King of Drama!" She started to raise her voice and was on the war path with the "apology" she was given. She heard a voice being cleared and turned her glare to Kyoya, "What the hell do you want?"

"Haruhi, what our inept leader was trying to say is that we are sorry. They did not mean anything the way you took it and it was a mistake that they will not make again. They were not in shock that Akio asked you of all people out on a date, but that he had enough guts to ask you out at all. You are a beautiful lady and we all know that you are a wonderful friend and one of the smartest people we know, but as a host it had to be intimidating for him to ask and yet he did it anyways. They were not prepared for the fact that other men would want to court you and that there was a possibility of being wooed away from the club. They had never had to deal with this situation before. You went from being a guy in the eyes of the school to immediately being a girl and Tamaki's girlfriend. Then you were in Boston and most of the boys there stayed away because of us or because they knew you had a boyfriend. Now, the game has changed and you are available to other men." Kyoya was trying his best to explain and smooth things over with her, but he wasn't sure if she was buying it.

"Haru-Chan, I am so sorry. I don't want you to leave and I know you are pretty and everything, but I didn't think about the fact that you weren't just our princess any more. Now you are a princess for the whole school," Hunny said. His tears were falling and when she looked up at him, it was full of sympathy for him.

"Don't cry Hunny-Senpai. I am sorry too. I guess I did take it the wrong way and who said I was leaving? Sorry guys, but you are stuck with me. I may get mad at you, but you are still my best friends." She pulled him into a hug and realized how much taller he was than her now. The man she was hugging was once shorter than her and now the top of her head only came to the bottom of his chin. He was still the shortest of the men, but he wasn't the shortest in the club any longer. She giggled a little at the reverse in heights and pulled back from the hug, "Ok guys, I guess you can come in for a bit. I was about to make some tea. Did you want to stay for dinner? I still have to decide what to make and may have to run to the market, but you are more than welcome to stay." She accepted what Kyoya and Hunny-Senpai had said and decided to forgive all of them.

"Actually Haruhi, we brought dinner with us as a peace offering." Kyoya said walking into the apartment and taking off his shoes. The others followed him inside and they all went to the living room to sit around the table.

"What did you bring?"

"Sushi." Hikaru responded. "And plenty of fancy tuna for you," Kaoru added. Together they finished, "We know it's your favorite."

"And cake for dessert." Hunny-senpai added.

Her eyes got big and she got a smile on her face to show her joy over the dinner selection. Fancy tuna was still her weakness and she still loved it. It was one of the perks that she indulged in while hanging around this group of men. They knew her love of food and her fondness for fancy tuna, "Yum. Well then, let me make the tea and then I will be in there." As she started to make the tea, she noticed that Hunny-Senpai had not gone in the living room with the others and stayed in the kitchen with her, "Is there something you need senpai?"

"No, Haru-chan. I just wanted to help if I could. And I wanted to say, I really am sorry. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. I know that you are a catch and there are a lot of guys that would be lucky to date you," Hunny-Senpai said. He felt the need to still apologize and make sure that she understood their reaction (well mainly his).

"It's ok Hunny-Senpai. I forgive you and I understand. Don't tell Tamaki I said this, but maybe I did over react a little bit." She winked and giggled.

Hunny couldn't help but laugh with her. He continued to stand there and keep her company until the tea was ready. Then he helped her carry it to the table where the other hosts had gathered. He knew after what happened today, it would make the others think more about their feelings about her dating someone again (host and non-host), and it would also make them analyze their own feelings for her more. He wondered what was going to happen next and if it would pull the hosts apart. He knew whatever was coming it would test their friendship bonds. He just hoped that they would get through it and make it to the other side.

**A/N…. So what do you think? Does Hunny have feelings for the female host also, or is he there to support his cousin? Will Kyoya make a move? What will the twins do now that they know someone has feelings for her? What is Tamaki going to do? Only a chapter or two more before the couple will start to become evident. You still have time to help me decide the couple you would like to see at the end of this story. You can either PM me or post on a review. Thank you for reading and for those of you who have reviewed…. THANK YOU! I love reviews, both good and bad, so if you can, please do so. You guys are awesome. **


	6. What Are These Feelings?

Disclaimer… By now you have read the disclaimer on the other chapters, same thing goes for this one. Enjoy.

**A/N: In this chapter we delve into the feelings of all of the hosts and next chapter I plan to start to build onto everything. You still have time to vote for your choice in couple. Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

Chapter 6 – What Are These Feelings?

After dinner and some visiting, everyone went home for the night. They would all see each other the next day for "family time", but in order to deal with Tamaki's exuberance, sleep was a necessity. Plus everyone had some things on their minds that they had to think about. No one had been prepared for what happened earlier and it brought a lot of things to the surface for the men of the host club.

Tamaki

Tamaki got home and went straight to his room. He had a bit of homework to finish before he could go to bed. Since he was going to be busy this weekend, he did not want to put it off. He pulled out his text books and notebook and started to work. The only problem was he was distracted. It had really bothered him to see someone ask Haruhi out today. He wanted to yell "MINE!", but he couldn't. He wanted to pull her into his arms and make sure no one would touch her, but he no longer had that option. What options did he have available to him? He needed to think about this. Questions plagued his mind. "Did we break up too soon? Was it a mistake? Am I regretting it? Do I truly love her the way she wants to be loved? The way someone should be loved when they are in a serious relationship?" So many questions, and he did not know what the answers were. He decided he needed to think and sort through everything. He wouldn't be able to concentrate on homework until he did this.

He took out a piece of paper and started writing all of his questions down. Then he started to try to answer them. This was not an easy feat for him to accomplish and in the end, couldn't answer all of them. After sitting there trying to come up with answers for an hour, he decided to pull out another piece of paper and make two columns on it. On the left side, he labeled it "Break up good" and the right was labeled "Break up bad". He started writing everything down he could think of in both columns. In the end "Break up good" was longer. He read everything he wrote and realized that yes, it was for the best, but he did not like other people asking her out.

"She deserves the best man out there and I will help her find it. I don't want to see just anyone ask her out. If I cannot have her, then it must be one of the other hosts! At least that way I can still be a part of her life!" Tamaki made the declaration standing on his chair, and he immediately fell out of it and on his head when a maid came in to make sure he was ok when she heard the ruckus. "I'm fine, you can go," he said getting up from his place on the floor."

He was determined to help his little girl find love, but the question was who would be the best man for her? Who would love her the way she deserved to be loved? He had to observe each of the hosts and think about this.

Hunny/Mitsukuni

When Hunny-senpai got home, he went to the family dojo to work out. He had some things on his mind and working out sometimes helped clear up the fuzziness of the situation.

He knew that hosting boys meant that the possibility was high that Haruhi would find someone to date or that someone would fall for her. All of the hosts loved her, so why wouldn't other men. He also knew that coming out as a girl meant more competition for her hand and heart. He didn't think they would have to worry about it while she was with Tamaki, but now they did. He trusted his friend and knew that she would never purposely put herself in a situation that would compromise her and she would never try to hurt someone on purpose, but that doesn't mean that the men in the school were the same. Not everyone was as honorable or as well-bred as the ones in the host club.

He also knew that although he loved her, it was as a little sister. They were there for each other to comfort one another ever since she joined the club. A year ago if she and Tamaki had broken up, he would have tried to woo her himself. Times have changed though and he realized his feelings for her were not of true love, but he did love her all the same.

He and his cousin protected her and would continue to do that as long as she needed them to, but they could not be there all of the time. Something needed to be done. He knew his cousin's feelings were not of family and he truly cared for her. If something happened to Haruhi, Takashi would take it extremely hard. Hunny knew he could cope with losing her to another man, but he could not cope with something bad happening to her. There was no other way, she would have to learn to defend herself and he would be her teacher. Takashi could help also, this would help them get closer to each other also and maybe open the door of her heart to him. It was a good plan, a solid plan. The only problem, he knew the other hosts had feelings too and that could mess up his plans. He had to think about what to do. You cannot go into battle without a contingency plan after all.

Mori/Takashi

Mori got home and decided after the day he had, he needed to meditate. He needed to clear his mind and find center. What was normally so easy for him was a difficult task tonight. The more he tried to clear his mind, the more he thought about a small girl with deep brown eyes. Without trying, she could make him laugh and smile. She brought out more protective instincts than Mitsukuni had, and she made him feel things he didn't know he could. She knew all of the hosts inside and out and could read them like a book. The only thing she couldn't apparently see and was completely blind to, was everyone's feelings.

He gave up trying to meditate and lay down on his bed to think. He laughed to himself at the antics and her reaction to everything over the nearly two years he has known her. When she walked into the music room and broke the vase, it was the best day of his life. She brought with her a breath of fresh air and he loved her for it. He has had to rescue her from Tamaki and the twins more times than he can count, he has helped her with school work upon occasion, and she has helped take care of Mitsukuni when he was upset. He never questioned his feelings for her. He always knew what they were, but he buried them for the sake of the host club king. He knew now that she was no longer with Tamaki; the other hosts would be battling for her heart. He wanted to do the same, but he also knows she just got out of a serious relationship and needed time. He didn't want to put her in the middle of something and he did not want to force her hand to go one place or another. The question then was how did he win her heart without subjecting her to the games and antics he was sure the others would use? He also didn't want to hurt his cousin. He didn't think Mitsukuni had feelings for the princess of the host club, but he needed to know for certain, that was going to be step one. He would think about the rest later.

Kaoru

On the way home, Kaoru looked at his twin and studied him. He knew that Hikaru loved Haruhi and pushed down the feelings when she was with Tamaki. He also knew that the feelings were coming back to the surface since the break-up. The problem: he also loved Haruhi and in the past he buried his feelings for the sake of his twin. He didn't think he could do that again. He had to take his own chances. That was a lesson he learned from Haruhi. They were both individuals even though they were twins and he had just as much right to be happy as Hikaru did. He was planning on giving her time, but today showed that time was not on their side. The school was noticing how great she was and sooner or later, she would say "yes" to one of her pursuers. He wanted the victor to be himself, but he didn't want to hurt Hikaru. He was unsure about how to proceed.

As he watched Hikaru, he prayed for an easy answer to this problem. The last thing he wanted was to lose a brother over something like this. What was he going to do?

Hikaru

He knew Kaoru was watching him. It is hard not to feel someone's eyes on you when you are the only two in the back of the car. Today was an eye opener for him and he was sure the rest of the club. He couldn't believe that someone had the gall to ask their princess on a date. Over the last year or so, he has grown up a lot. He no longer considered her a toy even though they still joked like that, and he was better about controlling his temper and jealousy. Today had tested him though. He was jealous and wanted to mark her as his. Then he wanted to go find Akio and tell him to back off and stay away. He wasn't good enough for her. He was class 2-B. She deserved at least class A. Yes, she was a commoner, but she worked hard and got into this school on her own. She was class A and therefore, deserved no less from the person she was with.

He loved her still. After all this time, he knew he still loved her, but he had a feeling that his twin did also. When they were in this situation before, Kaoru stepped back and let him have a chance. Was he supposed to do that this time for his twin? He didn't know if he could, but he also knew that he loved his brother and wanted him to be happy. He didn't want to lose someone that he had been close to since the womb. He also didn't want to lose his friends through this. Haruhi was one of his best friend and after Kaoru, no one was closer. Would fighting for her hand, push her away? Would it push his brother away? He didn't know what to do. Maybe he and Kaoru needed to talk before something happened and they could not come back from it.

Kyoya

Kyoya knew that today would start a landslide of epic proportions. He also knew that Haruhi had no idea what Akio had started when he asked her out on a date. It might have been better if she stayed with Tamaki if for no other reason than the protect everyone from heartache. He knew that it was not fair to say that and he knew that it was for the best that they did break up, but he had convinced himself that she and Tamaki were meant to be and would get married, so he pushed his feelings aside for that of his best friend. When the two hosts broke up, the flood gates opened and the feelings came rushing back in. Not that they weren't always there, tightly reined in and under lock and key. The leash broke and the key was found. Now he was dealing with his feelings again.

Due to the situation today, he knew that it was only a matter of time before she found someone else and maybe this time it would be the right person for her, the one that she would marry in the future. He was always able to picture the two of them married and with kids. He appreciated her mind and her gentleness. He also liked her bluntness: yes, it was a sharp knife sometimes, but she never said what didn't need to be said. She stuck up for her friends and genuinely cared for the people she allowed into her circle. He counted himself lucky to be considered one of her close/best friends, but he wanted to be so much more. He loved her and wanted her love in return.

He knew now was not the time, but he also knew that he didn't have much time. The other hosts after today would try to win her heart. He needed a way to win the competition. He knew his competition was going to be all of the hosts except maybe Hunny-senpai. Even Tamaki could be a threat, but he hoped not. He truly hoped his friend had decided that it had been best to break-up. He didn't want to hurt his closest friend, but he also wanted the chance to be happy.

He knew his father approved of the scholarship student, so that was not going to be a problem. The biggest problem he saw, Haruhi herself. She was so oblivious sometimes. He had to think about all of variables involved and had to come up with a plan to win her heart.

Haruhi

"I wonder what Tamaki has planned for tomorrow? Knowing him it is going to deal with going to a commoner something or other. UGH! Why do I have to go again?" Haruhi thought. She loved hanging out with her friends, but this week had been long and hard and she wanted a break. Thankfully she would have that on Sunday, provided none of the hosts surprised her and ruined that day for her.

She thought about everything she had to do this weekend and what she was going to buy at the store. After the other hosts had left, she had started looking through her circulars and clipping coupons. She needed to make sure to get enough for the week because she would not have time to go shopping during the week.

She briefly thought about Akio and the fact that he asked her out, but it was nothing more than a fleeting thought before it left her mind altogether on the heels of another thought, "I really hope the guys don't do anything stupid because he asked me out on a date." Yes, she was still very oblivious to feelings directed towards her. She also didn't know the hosts that well if she thought they were going to leave this alone. The past two years with them should have been enough to teach her that lesson. Silly Haruhi.

Normal POV

The clock had started and the competition had begun. The hosts felt sure that the only true competition was within the club, but what they did not think about was that there were other students in the school that were drawn to Haruhi and that could affect the outcome of the war of hearts.


	7. Family Time

Disclaimer… I don't own Ouran or its characters.

**A/N: Thank you for the reviews everyone! In the next couple of chapters I will start to reveal the couple. I hope everyone likes who I picked. If you have an opinion, you can still give your selection, but this is the last chapter you have the chance to do that. I hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween. Please read and review. **

Chapter 7 – Family Time

"6am is too early to get up on a Saturday. Damn Tamaki!" Kyoya was talking to himself as he threw his alarm clock against the wall destroying it, "I just don't understand why we couldn't do something later in the day if we had to do anything at all."

"M-m-m-master Kyoya…." A maid timidly stammered as she stuck her head in his room.

"What is it? Spit it out already!" Kyoya yelled. He was not a morning person and everyone knew it.

"Tamaki Suoh is here for you." After she relayed the message, she bolted from the room. She wanted to get as far away from the youngest son as possible. He had a temper in the morning and no one wanted to try his patience.

"Damn idiot! I just woke up!" Kyoya muttered to himself as he walked to the shower. He would make his kingliness pay for this later. An evil smirk appeared on his lips as he made his way to the shower, he was going to make him pay dearly for this early morning wake up call. There was a reason he was called the Shadow King.

Tamaki was waiting downstairs for his friend. He had arrived early because he wanted to make sure Kyoya got up and got ready to go. A sudden shiver wracked his body at the same time Kyoya had his evil thought and then passed. "Must have been a draft," he thought. A different maid came down and informed him that Kyoya was up and would be down shortly.

By the time the two left Kyoya's mansion and were on their way to pick up everyone else, it was 7a. No one else seemed to have a problem with the time and was ready and waiting for the car to pick them up. They ran into a snag when they arrived at Haruhi's apartment and there were no lights on, which meant no one was up. Tamaki knocked on the door loudly with his usual flare and the door was ripped open by Haruhi's dad, Ranka. He looked like he had been woken up and was not happy.

Ranka grabbed Tamaki by the throat and started to yell at him, "What do you think you are doing knocking on someone's door this early in the morning. People around here sleep and they do not like to be woken up early when they only went to bed at four in the morning!" Tamaki was starting to turn blue. He still didn't like the blonde and although he would never tell his precious daughter, was secretly happy that they were no longer together. He was too much of an idiot for her and needed someone that wasn't so much of an airhead. Kyoya was a good one as were the others in the group, just not Tamaki. He accepted him while they were dating because she loved him, but that didn't mean he had to like him.

"Ranka, so nice to see you again. We are sorry, but we had a group outing planned for this morning and we are here to pick up Haruhi." Kyoya injected coolly.

"Does she know that? She is still sleeping," Ranka said releasing the boy from his grip and letting him drop to the ground.

"Yes, she knew about the outing. Tamaki, did you tell her what time to be ready?" Kyoya looked down at the boy on the ground trying to gain his breath again.

"Ummm, well, I uh, I think I forgot to tell her the time," Tamaki said quietly. He knew he was in trouble based on the looks he was getting from the mob that surrounded him.

"What's all the noise about? Dad, who's here?" Haruhi said sleepily from behind Ranka. She had been awoken from the noise the group was making.

"Oh honey. Did you sleep well? It is the boys from the host club here to take you out. Now go hurry up and get ready. I will start the water for tea," Ranka said with a smile on his face.

"They're here already? Why so early everyone? What are we doing today?" She questioned. She was not happy about the early morning wake up call. She normally got up around 8 am on the weekend, but she had stayed up late last night to finish homework and wanted to sleep in for a bit this morning. That planned was ruined by the appearance of the host club. She should have known that things never went the way she wanted them to when it concerned the club.

"Yes, Haruhi. We are sorry that Tamaki neglected to inform you of the time, but he actually set the time to be early morning. Take your time getting ready. We will wait for you in the living room. If that is ok with you Ranka," Kyoya spoke for the group.

"That is fine Kyoya. Please come in and have a seat." Ranka was smiling at the host club vice president.

Everyone went into the apartment and into the living room to sit around the table while Ranka made tea. There was an air of hostility coming from the father towards Tamaki and everyone could feel it. Some of the hostility was coming from Kyoya also. He hated getting up early and he was mad at Tamaki for dragging them to Haruhi's house to wake up Ranka because he failed to tell her what time to be ready. Sometimes he wondered why they were best friends.

The tea was served and everyone participated in chit chat about school and the club until Haruhi was ready. Ranka appreciated the club and the boys for breaking her out of her shell and being there for her. Due to the club, she had friends she could rely upon and call when needed. Although she had some friends in school, she was always so worried about her studies or him that she was never really close with anyone at school. This club changed all of that for her and he was grateful to them. He never worried when she was with the club and that included Tamaki. He didn't like the president of the club much, but he knew he would take care of his daughter and protect her. He also knew that they could help make her dreams of being a lawyer come true. They could open doors that would never be opened for a commoner. He only wanted the best for her and these men could help.

Haruhi came into the room looking more awake now that she was showered and dressed. She had a cup of tea in her hand and sat down at the table between Mori and Kyoya. "Ok Tamaki. Why the early morning wakeup call and why was I not told about the time? You guys woke up my dad and he didn't get in until late."

"Sorry. So sorry! I forgot to tell you the time and it was my entire fault. As for why the early morning call, I thought that we could all get breakfast at the new pancake place in town and then the fair is in town. Isn't that wonderful?!" Tamaki was starting to get excited about the day ahead.

"Really? Pancakes and the fair? That is why we are up so early?" Haruhi said in a deadpanned voice.

"What? It will be fun. Don't commoners like pancakes and fairs?"

"Yummy pancakes! I love pancakes. Don't you want to have breakfast with us Haru-Chan?" Hunny-senpai looked at her with big eyes and a cute look on his face. He could still pull off his Lolita shota persona even after he grew taller.

"Yes, I like pancakes. Fine we will go. I am just not sure why we had to go so early," Haruhi grumbled.

"Wonderful! We will go and have fun and I will win you a teddy bear." Tamaki said excitedly. Honestly he was starting to get on more than just Ranka and Kyoya's nerves.

"I don't want a new teddy bear." Haruhi stated. This last statement sent Tamaki to the closet to cultivate more mushrooms. She sighed, again with the closet and the pouting, "Fine you can win me a new teddy bear. Now are we ready to go?"

Tamaki came out of the closet and attempted to hug her and twirl her around, but Ranka put a stop to that before he could even grab her, "You have fun now. Don't get into trouble and don't let Tamaki pester you too much. Kyoya and Takashi, please watch after my little girl." Both teens nodded their agreement to the older man and walked towards the door.

"What? Why are they watching out for her? Why not me? I should be the one that watches out for her." He was ranting and everyone was tuning him out.

"Tamaki if you don't want to be left behind, I suggest you shut up, get on your shoes and get into the limo. Everyone else is on their way downstairs." Kyoya said looking over his shoulder at Tamaki.

This seemed to bring the king out of his bubble and he realized that everyone was indeed gone. The only one left was Ranka and he was giving him a furious look. He got his shoes on and rushed out the door,

"Thank you Ranka for your hospitality. It is always good to see you," Kyoya said politely. He knew he needed to remain on the father's good side if he wanted a chance with Haruhi. He made need him on his side in the future. The man was a wealth of knowledge when it came to the small woman and he knew that knowledge was power.

After everyone got into the limo, it took off and headed for the first destination. It was quiet in the limo. Some were irritated about the early morning wakeup call and others were keeping quiet because they could feel the tension. No one wanted to rile the demons inside Kyoya and Haruhi.

They arrived at the restaurant and caused a scene. This was the first limo to the new restaurant and it contained six gorgeous men. Haruhi knew what everyone was gawking at. It happened a lot when they all went out together. She just shook her head and went up to the hostess counter, "Excuse me. We need a table for seven." The hostess ignored her and continued to stare at the men.

"Excuse me dear lady. Could we get a table that seats seven? We would be grateful for your help." Kyoya stepped in when he saw the woman ignore Haruhi and the look on the petite woman's face. Haruhi did not like to be ignored like that and since she had been woken up early in the morning, who knew what she would do to the hostess. He himself was irritated and still had thoughts of murdering Tamaki on his mind and he wanted to say something to the rude hostess, but he decided the best thing right now was to host the hostess so that they could get a table and he could get some coffee.

"Oh, yes. Please just give me a second and I will get a table ready for you," the hostess blushed and giggled.

Haruhi rolled her eyes. It hardly ever failed, they could get what they wanted by turning on the host charm. "Damn rich handsome bastards," she mumbled.

"What was that Haruhi?" Kyoya asked smirking. He knew what she said.

"It was nothing senpai. Thank you for getting her attention. She seemed to be focused elsewhere," She grumbled blushing. She knew she was busted, but tried to pretend otherwise. She always felt invisible when she was with the other hosts and they were out on the town so to speak. The guys didn't make her feel like that, but it was the people like the hostess that did it to her every time. It was irritating.

The hostess came back within a few minutes and led them to their table. She smiled at all of the men and narrowed her eyes at Haruhi. The female host was used to the looks of hostility and the attitudes. She was sitting down with six good looking guys and that made people jealous. She brushed it off like she always did and started to look at the menu. The waiter came and took their drink orders and disappeared. She was happy that it was a guy and not a girl. She was not in the mood for more dirty looks.

After their orders for food were taken, Tamaki started telling everyone about the fair that had come to town. Hunny-senpai and the twins looked enraptured by what he was saying. Mori-senpai, Kyoya, and Haruhi looked bored by it. The talk continued throughout the meal and at times Tamaki would ask about what commoners like best about fairs and what sort of commoner treats were at the fair. Haruhi would answer the best way she could. She was getting irritated though, taking a deep breath, she tried to calm down. "It's just a damn fair. He acts like he has never been to one before, but we went to that one in Boston. What the hell?" She thought to herself, but it wasn't a quiet thought. Mori-senpai had heard. He put his hand on her shoulder and squeezed. He leaned down and told her to calm down and breath, it was just Tamaki. She looked up into his eyes and nodded as she blushed. He patted her head and turned back to his cousin. No one seemed to notice the exchange between the two, but Tamaki and Kyoya did. Tamaki filed it away for his plan and Kyoya looked at it as a challenge.

After breakfast, they all piled into the limo again and drove towards the fair. Haruhi decided to forget about how irritated she was and have fun. If she was stuck with them for the day, may as well make the best of it. Already her spirits were lifting and she found herself in a better mood.

They arrived at the fair and everyone got out of the limo and went to purchase tickets to get in. The way Tamaki, the twins, and Hunny-senpai were acting, you would think they were kids since they were bouncing and couldn't contain their excitement. The other three hosts just shook their heads at their friends. They were kids in a candy store and the fair was the mother lode.

Once inside, Tamaki and the twins took off towards the games. Hunny-senpai and Mori-senpai went to check out the food booths (Hunny had a bottomless stomach it seemed). Kyoya and Haruhi were left standing at the entrance. Kyoya knew that was going to happen and Haruhi figured she would be left completely alone.

"Well Haruhi, seems like we have been abandoned. What would you like to do?" Kyoya asked. He was going to use this time with her to his advantage.

"I don't know Kyoya-senpai. I should have known they would have taken off. Do you want to ride some of the rides?" She loved riding the different rides at the fair and did not want to go alone, but she knew how Kyoya was and didn't want to force him into something. He was not the one she thought she would be walking around the fair with.

"Ok. We can do that. Let's start walking and see what we can find." Kyoya said. He saw the look of excitement on her face when she asked about going on the rides and knew it was a way to spend time with her and to show her who he really is.

After they had ridden about five rides, Kyoya's cell phone started to ring. He looked down at the caller id and cringed. It was Tamaki, "Hello?"

"Kyoya, Haruhi is missing and we can't find you either!" Tamaki yelled.

"Don't worry. Haruhi is with me. When all of you decided to take off and leave us behind, we decided to stick together and ride some rides. We will meet you by the entrance in 10 minutes." He didn't wait for a response and hung up the phone. The phone call ruined the good time he was having. He and Haruhi were having fun and laughing. He didn't think he had laughed so much or felt so free in his entire life. She did that for him. The rides were thrilling, but riding them with her made them even better.

"Tamaki I take it?" Haruhi asked with a scowl on her face. She had been having fun to and loved this side of Kyoya-senpai that she had never seen before. She didn't want it to end, but knew sooner or later it would.

"Yes, apparently you are missing and they can't find me," he said mockingly.

"Dumbass! He is the one that took off," she retorted.

Sighing Kyoya agreed. "We are supposed to meet them at the entrance, so I guess we should start heading that way." She nodded and they walked side by side to meet the other hosts.

"Haruhi, I was so worried about you! I feared you had been kidnapped!" Tamaki ran to her yelling when he saw her and Kyoya approaching. When he had reached her, he pulled her into a crushing embrace and muttered nonsense that no one could understand.

"Enough with your melodramatic self! You are the ones that left Kyoya-senpai and I standing here in your dust, so we decided to ride some rides. I didn't feel like playing games or eating since we just finished breakfast. So stop already. You are getting on my nerves." Haruhi yelled at Tamaki. She had had enough from him and his dramatic side today. It had irritated her and she was done.

"But I was just worried about you." He replied sounding so small.

"If you were really worried, you would not have left me like you did and you would have called Kyoya-senpai a lot sooner than 2.5 hours." This last statement sent him to his corner (he always seemed to find a corner where ever he went). She took another deep breath to calm down, "Get out of the corner Tamaki and tell us what the plan is now. Are we staying at the fair or is there something else you had planned."

Tamaki came out of the corner in order to inform his followers of his plans, "We are staying, but we will eat lunch as a family at the food booths. Then we will all ride the Ferris wheel, the roller coaster, and the carousel together. After that we will be done for the day. That is unless one of you wants to add to the plan." He looked at everyone and they all shook their heads no.

It was time to go to the food stalls for lunch. Hunny-senpai led the way since he had already been there with Mori-senpai. When everyone had selected what food they wanted, they all sat down at one table to eat, which remained fairly quiet until the twins decided to throw some of their food at Tamaki and he attempted to retaliate. Mori grabbed Hunny to get him out of the way. Kyoya grabbed Haruhi and pulled her out of the way. The four of them made it to safety before the messy stuff was thrown. The four just shook their heads and rolled their eyes. It was always the same. Haruhi wondered if those three would ever grow up.

After the food fight, the three morons went to the men's room to get cleaned up and came out soaked. Apparently a water fight had started between the three in the bathroom and now their clothes were drenched. They each got a new t-shirt from one of the vendors, but that didn't help the fact that their bottom halves were wet also.

Kyoya made the suggestion that instead of continuing their day at the fair, they head home so that the three idiots could change into dry clothes. Everyone agreed. Their day at the fair was over. If Hikaru and Kaoru had a plan to impress Haruhi, it had seriously backfired. The only people she was talking to right now were what she called the "non-children". That group was Mori-senpai, Hunny-senpai, and Kyoya-senpai. She was irritated about the food fight and then the water fight. It seemed to her, for such well-bred men, they didn't know how to act in public. "They should take lessons from Mori-senpai and Kyoya-senpai," she thought to herself. "At least it is always memorable when we go out together." She turned and looked at the passing landscape. Family time was done for the day and it had ended with a bang (thankfully not literally).


	8. Confrontations

Disclaimer…. As with previous chapters, I still don't own.

Chapter 8 – Confrontations

The next couple of weeks went by normally, well normal for the host club, and then the quiet was land blasted. Haruhi found herself in the middle of a tug-o-war before she knew what was going on.

Akio had come back to the club hoping to spend more time with the female host in the hopes of wooing her. She knew that he still had feelings for her and was doing her best not to encourage those feelings, but wondered if she should get Kyoya involved. Since he was the brains behind the club, he would be the most likely candidate to help her in this situation. She decided to wait to see what would happen. Today Akio had requested a one on one hosting time with her instead of her normal group time. "Hello Akio, would you like some tea?" She sat down next to him on the couch and placed the tea service on the table.

"Yes, thank you. I would like to get right to the point on why I requested private time with you, if that is ok with you?" He said nervously. He didn't want to lose his nerve and he was afraid if he waited, he would do just that. At her nod, he continued, "I have been hoping that the last couple of weeks would have allowed you to get to know me better and change your mind about giving me a chance romantically. Would you do me the honor of going out on a date with me this weekend?"

"I am sorry, but my feelings have not changed. I only see you as a friend and someone I know from school and I don't think it will ever change from that."

"I see. Do you have feelings for someone else?"

"What?! No, I don't have feelings for anyone right now. I just got out of a relationship a few weeks ago. I think it will be a long while before I have feelings for someone else."

Suddenly, he grabbed her arm, "Are you sure? You know you are just a stupid commoner. You would think that you would jump at the chance to raise your status, or do you have your sights set on someone higher status and richer? Maybe you should learn what your place is!" He was yelling by this point and everyone in the club room had turned around to see what was going on. The hosts were converging on where the couple was.

"I think you had better let her go now," the deadly calm voice of Kyoya said.

Instead of letter her go though, his grip tightened and she yelped. "She is just a damn commoner. How can she be that important to you? So don't interfere!"

The black aura was surrounding the Shadow King. He nodded to Hunny-senpai and Mori-Senpai. Hunny knocked out Akio with a karate chop to the neck. Mori released his hold on Haruhi and pulled her away from the situation and into the back room. The twins had started to move the unconscious body of Akio to the hallway. Then Kyoya made a call to his body guard to have someone remove the garbage from outside the side club room door. Finally, Tamaki was escorting the ladies out the main club entrance stating that club was closed for the day and apologized for the early closure.

Haruhi was shaken up by the whole ordeal. She didn't want to admit it, but she was truly afraid about what happened and now worried about what was going to happen in the future with Akio. They still went to the same school and she didn't want to have another run in like this or worse.

Mori could feel her trembling as he held her in his arms and wished that she could do something for her. "It is ok. I am here and so are the others. We will protect you and I will make sure that nothing ever happens to you." He wanted to tell her so much more, but now was not the time.

She looked up into his eyes and felt comforted. She knew that she was safe. She was safe in his arms and safe from the world because he would protect her. She knew the others would also. They were more than friends, they were family. She blushed and looked back at her hands in her lap. Her heart was beating fast and she didn't know why. Meekly she said, "Thank you Mori-Senpai." That is when the tears started and she couldn't control them. He pulled her tighter to his chest and let her cry.

The rest of the club came in a couple of minutes later and saw her sitting on Mori-Senpai's lap crying her eyes out. They rushed to her side and tried to offer comfort, but she couldn't stop.

"Haruhi, I just want you to know that the Akio situation will be taken care of, but to be sure, I am going to have someone assigned to follow you. I will even be nice and not charge you for it." Kyoya said. He was really shaken up by what happened and couldn't get it out of his head that something could have or could still happen to her. He needed to make sure she was ok. None of them could be with her 24/7 and if he assigned someone to watch her, he knew that she would be safe.

She shook her head no. She didn't want to call more attention to the situation. When she calmed down enough to talk, she looked at Kyoya and said, "I don't need a babysitter. I don't want to make this bigger than it is. Maybe he has learned his lesson. You said it yourself, you are handling the situation. Besides, he was right, I am just a commoner."

"No, Haruhi, you are much more than that. You are one of our friends and as Tamaki would say family. We will make sure you are safe and until I know for sure that the situation has been diffused, I believe that the bodyguard is the best course of action. None of us can be with you 24/7 and this would make sure that nothing else happens. It will not be forever and as soon as I have the all clear, I will remove the guard. I could have done this without your knowledge, but I thought you might want to know to help ease your mind about walking the halls with Akio out there," Kyoya replied with his don't argue with me tone of voice.

She sighed. She knew she didn't have much of a choice when he put it like that. Looking at everyone's face, she could see that they were just as shaken up as she was. In that moment she saw how much they truly loved and cared about her. She felt like even though she was a commoner, she belonged with them in their circle. They were a family. She nodded her agreement and knew she would not have to worry about her former guest again.

"Good now, I will take you home since I need to talk to you about something and introduce you to your new guard." Kyoya said and then turned to gather his stuff.

Mori gave her one last gentle squeeze and whispered, "Thank you for accepting. It would make us all feel better knowing you were taken care of. He is right we can't be there 24/7, but if you need me, call me. I will call and check on you later and I will see you tomorrow unless you need me sooner."

She nodded blushing and got up off of his lap. As soon as she was free from the gentle giant, she was found in a crushing embrace by the four other men in the room. They were all scared and needed to make sure that she was alright. They needed to hug her and touch her physically. The problem was they were crushing her and she couldn't breathe. That was ok though; she just smiled and enjoyed the smothering this time. She needed the comfort and reassurance.

Kyoya came back in the room and saw the spectacle before him and shook his head thinking, "Those four will never learn." He cleared his throat and said, "Haruhi, let's go. I already have your things gathered." Once he said this, he turned to walk out of the back room and headed for the entrance. He was still shaken.

She said her final good-byes to the rest of the hosts and followed Kyoya out the door. When she reached him, she tried to take her bag from him, but he said he would carry it. She just nodded. She just didn't have any fight left in her right now. She wanted a bath and bed. She would work on her homework over weekend.

When they got into his limo and started to drive off, he looked at her. She looked a little defeated and he didn't like seeing that in her. He had seen her fall off a bridge going after Tamaki to keep him from leaving, she stood up to his father (no one did that), she got into this school on her own, and was able to handle 6 of the most powerful men in the school. Yet, today, she looked smaller to him than he had ever seen her.

"Haruhi, is your arm ok?" Kyoya asked when he noticed she was rubbing her arm where Akio had grabbed her.

"Huh. Yah senpai, it is. It might be bruised, but that is all." She replied quietly.

"You know he was wrong."

She looked at him with a questioning look on her face, "What do you mean?"

"You may be a commoner in status, but you are so much more than that. You are smart, beautiful, ambitious, head strong and most importantly… you have more class than he does. You belong in our group and it isn't because we felt sorry for you or because of a debt. You make us all better men and you helped to make us a family. The twins came out of their shell, Tamaki learned what being in a real relationship meant, Mori-Senpai shows more expression and talks more around you, and Hunny-senpai has started to act a little more grown up. I believe it has to do a lot with you and your influence on them."

"What about you Kyoya-senpai?"

"Me? Well, I am me." He said with a smirk. She had changed him too, but he was not ready to talk about that just yet. He didn't know if he ever would be, but that was for the future to decide.

She laughed at his comment. It was a typical Shadow King answer. "Thank you Senpai. I know I belong in the group and all of you care. It just bothered me today and I don't know why. All of you have made comments and teased me for being a commoner, but this was different."

He just nodded at that and decided to get her mind off of the matter. "So would you like to know what I needed to talk to you about?"

"Yes, what is it?"

"Do you remember when you said you would help with revenge for the twins?" She nodded with a gleam in her eye and he continued, "I think sufficient time has passed and now would be a good time to strike. You always want to make sure that you keep everyone on their toes and if you strike too soon, they will be expecting it and therefore you will not get the full affect. Wait a little while and then you get everything you want and more." He had an evil look on his face.

"I'm in. Are we going to include anyone else in the plan?"

"Well, that depends on what we decide to do. I am going to allow you to help me plot the revenge. This is a real honor for you since usually I do not allow people to help me plan."

She laughed and said, "Well thank you for this prestigious honor Lord Shadow King."

At this time they had pulled up to her apartment and there was a man standing downstairs. He looked like he was waiting for the limo. When it stopped, he walked up to the back door and opened it. Kyoya got out first and nodded to the man and then helped Haruhi out of the car.

"Haruhi, this is Daichi. He will be in charge of your security until I know that the situation has been neutralized. I will also be sending a car for you in the morning and one of the hosts or that car will take you home at night."

"Nice to meet you, Daichi," she bowed towards the body guard and he bowed back. She was groaning inwardly about the new information she just received about the rides to and from school, but knew better than to argue with Kyoya. He would get his way one way or another and it was just best to give in now. She knew he was worried and a little freaked out, so she gave in on this.

The three of them moved up to the apartment where Kyoya and Haruhi could plot and Daichi could get a feel for the layout. He wasn't going to be sleeping there, but he needed to know the lay of the land so to speak.

Haruhi just kept telling herself, "It is just for a little bit. A short period of time. It is temporary." She had a feeling that she may want to kill Kyoya when all of this was over.

Before they could get too much into the planning stages of the plan for revenge, Kyoya's phone rang and after he got off of the call, he turned to Haruhi, "I have to go. I apparently have a family dinner with my father tonight that I cannot miss. We will discuss this more later. Are you busy this weekend?"

"Um, no, I don't think so. My dad is working all weekend, so I was just going to study. Well that is provided the host club can leave me alone for once." She said giving him a very pointed look.

He laughed, "Message received. I will call you tomorrow to set up a time to meet this weekend to plot our revenge against the twins."

"Sounds good, but make sure you leave Tamaki at home. I just can't deal with him right now."

"I believe you will be Tamaki free this weekend besides maybe some phone calls. His father and grandmother are taking him out of town for business and they should be leaving any time."

"Excellent!" She looked almost giddy at the possibility of being free from the host king this weekend. Then she realized the twins may not leave her alone.

"And before you worry about the twins, they were leaving to go to one of their mother's shows this weekend and should also be leaving tonight."

"Damn mind reader." She mumbled.

"No, I just saw the look of horror and irritation on your face after you had a relieved look right before," he laughed at her.

"Fine, go to your dinner. I will talk to you tomorrow." She followed him out and when he was walking out the door, she said, "Kyoya? Thank you for everything. I know that I can count on all of you and that means a lot to me." She was blushing again. It seemed that around some people she just couldn't control it.

He nodded and walked away as she closed the door. He wanted to take care of her and make sure she was safe. He knew he had competition, and because it was Haruhi involved, he didn't know how it would turn out. He only knew she made him feel things he never had before.

Haruhi closed the door and locked it. Daichi was doing a perimeter sweep outside to make sure he knew all of the entrances and escapes from her apartment complex. She thought it was a bit much, but he was part of the Ootori private police force and he had to do things his way. She felt that Kyoya was going a bit overboard, but she wasn't going to argue with him. She felt better knowing someone was watching out for her at school, but did she really need someone with her all of the time?

She went back into the living room to finish her tea. She had changed out of her uniform when she got home, but put on a long sleeved shirt to hide her arm. It was bruised and didn't look pretty. You could clearly see a hand print on her arm. She didn't want Kyoya or any of the guys to see it; they would get angrier than they already were. She knew Kyoya gave her a funny look when she had come out of her room with the long sleeves, but thankfully didn't say anything. She wanted to forget today happened.

About an hour later, her cell phone rang and she answered it. She had received texts from Tamaki and the twins earlier confirming what Kyoya said about them leaving town. She texted back and told them that she was ok and she had her knew body guard so she would be safe. "Hello?" She said into the phone.

"Haruhi," she recognized the deep baritone voice on the other end of the phone.

"Hi Mori-Senpai. Is Hunny-Senpai ok? I know he was upset when I left earlier."

He smiled at her words. She was the one attacked and she was worried about his cousin, "Yah. He is here and eating cake in the kitchen."

"Oh wonderful, I wanted to stay and make sure he was ok, but Kyoya needed to go since we were meeting the new guard here."

"That is ok. We understood. So is he there now?"

"Yah, he is doing a perimeter sweep outside now. Kyoya left a while ago since he had to get home to a family dinner."

"What are you doing for dinner? Mitsukuni wanted to see if you would like to go out to dinner with us."

"Oh um, I was just about to cook something, but you and Hunny-senpai are more than welcome to come over and eat with me," she smiled into the phone. Honestly, she when she thought about it, she was not ready to be alone for the night.

"No, get ready and we will take you out. You don't need to cook. We will get sushi and you can have fancy tuna."

How could she argue with fancy tuna? "Ok, you twisted my arm." She laughed.

"We will pick you up in about 30 minutes outside. Make sure your guard knows."

"Alright, I will see you then."

She called the cell phone number she had been given to contact the guard when needed and let him know the plan. He was back at her apartment by the time Hunny and Mori arrived and when they knocked on her door, he was the one that answered it.

"Haru-Chan!" Hunny-senpai ran into the apartment and pulled Haruhi into a bone crushing hug, "Are you ok? Do you need anything? Do you want to have Usa-chan for the weekend?"

She smiled at his worry and told him that she was ok. She would let him keep Usa-chan, but if she changed her mind she would call him. He agreed and finally let her go.

Daichi already knew who the two men were. Not only has he been briefed about the host club and master Kyoya's closest friends, but he was trained by the Haninozuka and he is a distant cousin of Mori's. "Takashi, it is good to see you again," he said shaking the tall man's hand.

"You know Mori-senpai?" Haruhi asked curious.

"Actually Daichi knows both of us Haru-chan. He trained at one of my family's dojos and is a cousin of Takashi's."

"It is good to see you also Haninozuka-Sama," Daichi bowed to the Haninozuka heir.

"So you are the one that is protecting Haru-chan. Excellent, now I know we do not need to be worried. No one will protect you better than family Haru-Chan!"

She just nodded thinking about how small the world really was, "Are we ready to go then? Daichi, are you coming with us?"

"No, I will leave you to the safety of the young masters here. I want to finish up some ground work here before I report into master Kyoya, but call when you are on the way home," Daichi bowed and walked out of the apartment with a final good-bye to the other three.

"Let's go Haru-Chan!" Hunny-senpai grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the door. Mori-senpai grabbed her keys from her and locked the door before following her and his cousin to the waiting car. He felt better knowing that it was one of his family members watching her, but wished that he could be the one watching her full time. He knew it was not possible though since they were in separate classes among other things.

When they got to the restaurant, they were immediately seated and their orders taken. There seemed to be an air of worry permeating the group and Haruhi was starting to feel agitated by it. "Ok guys what's going on? I am fine. Kyoya-senpai has set up security to make sure I am safe and it isn't like Akio can try anything. Right?"

Hunny-senpai looked over at Mori-senpai and the taller one nodded. The two always did have a way of silently communicating that awed Haruhi. "Haru-Chan, one of the reasons that Kyo-Chan is going so overboard with your security, is because Akio's family has ties to the Yakuza and we are not sure if he will use those ties at this time. Of course, it is actually one of his cousins that have the direct ties, but we need to make sure you are alright. I am sure Kyo-Chan didn't want you to know so that you would not worry, but you need to know what kind of situation this really is. Don't worry though, you are safe."

She started shaking again. She had no idea. Suddenly she felt a comforting arm around her shoulders and looked up to see Mori-senpai looking down at her, "It will be ok. We will make sure you are always protected. I will make sure that you are never harmed." There was that promise of his again. It wasn't "we" it was "I". And once again it comforted her. She nodded and leaned into the embrace. She needed his strength right now.

Hunny saw his cousin wrap his arm around Haruhi's shoulders and heard what he said. He smiled knowing the real meaning behind the words and actions. He only hoped that one day Haruhi would be open to what that meaning really was. He knew right now she was closed off to the idea of love, especially after today, but you never knew what would happen in the future. "Haru-Chan, why don't you come and spend the night with me and Takashi? We can watch movies and eat cake. We will call your dad and tell him where you are and that way you are not alone tonight." He gave her his best sad face and biggest eyes.

"I don't know Hunny-senpai." Haruhi started. Then she looked up at Mori-senpai and he nodded. "Ok, I will come over," she agreed reluctantly. She really didn't want to be alone tonight, especially after finding out this new information. Besides she thought, maybe they would be able to help come up with ideas for the revenge plan for the twins. With that thought, she got an evil smirk on her face that would rival Kyoya's.

"Umm, Haru-Chan, are you alright? You look a little scary right now," Hunny-senpai said.

"Huh? Oh yah, I was just thinking of something that you two might be able to help me with. We can discuss it all later," she smiled at her two companions.

When they were leaving the restaurant, she called Daichi and let him know what the plan was and after stopping off at the apartment for a few things, they were on their way to the Haninozuka mansion. She was looking at the two people in the car with her and thinking about how blessed she was to have these men in her life.

Mori saw the smile and wondered about it, but was happy to just quietly observe her for now. He hoped to win her heart, but if he couldn't, he just wanted her to be happy and safe; and no matter what, he wanted her to know that he would always be there for her as a friend.

**A/N: No I have not forgotten about the twins or Tamaki. I am planning on making them more prominent in the next chapter. I hope everyone is enjoying the story. Please review if you get the chance. Thank you everyone who has read the story and given a review. If you have given me your couple suggestion, THANK YOU! I really wasn't sure who to pair up in this story. Special thanks to Stylewriter565 and mythogeek for your idea input. I appreciate it all.**


	9. Security

Disclaimer…. I don't own OHSHC, yet sometimes I wish I did. LOL

**A/N… Blossom Azalea – I decided to use your idea and bring Kasanoda into the story. I had actually kind of forgotten about him. Oops. Thanks. Everyone else, I hope you are enjoying the story, please review if you have the chance. **

Chapter 9 – Security

"Yes, thank you for your help Kasanoda. Like I said, I am not sure if he will try something, but I want to be sure that nothing happens," Kyoya said into his phone. After dinner with his father, he decided to call Ritsu Kasanoda to enlist his help if it was needed. He knew more about how the Yakuza operated and the inner workings than Kyoya did. He also cared about Haruhi as a friend (previously had more romantic feelings for her), so he knew he could count on him for help.

"Don't worry Kyoya-senpai. I will make sure that word gets out that nothing is to happen. We will make sure we take care of things on our side. She is a friend and I take care of my friends," Kasanoda said to the young Ootori. He had wondered why he was getting a call from Kyoya Ootori that night, but upon hearing what happened today, he wanted to make Akio pay. He would do what he could for the girl and for the host club.

"I will leave it in your hands then," Kyoya hung up from his call. He was worried and tired, his thoughts were on Haruhi. He looked at the time and realized that he had not heard from Daichi yet. He was about to pick up his phone to call him when it started to ring. "Now my phone is a mind reader," he thought to himself when he saw that it was Daichi calling him. "Ootori here."

"Master Ootori, I have finished a perimeter sweep and make sure everything was secure. I have a couple of men stationed in key places around the perimeter. She is staying with Haninozuka tonight though. He and Morinozuka took her out to dinner and she is staying with them tonight," Daichi was reporting to his employer.

"I see. Well then thank you for the update and make sure to check in at the scheduled times."

"Master Ootori?"

Kyoya was about to hang up the phone when he heard his name, "Yes?"

"I don't think she wanted to be alone tonight and her father would not be in until Sunday or Monday." He wasn't sure why he was telling Kyoya all of this, but he had heard the disappointment in his voice and felt the need to give him the information that was not asked for.

"Very well. Thank you. I have called the successor to the Kasanoda-gumi. He will make sure that the Yakuza does not get involved if the idiot wants to go to his cousin. I wanted you to be aware of this, but this does not change your mission in any way."

"I understand sir."

The call was disconnected and Kyoya leaned back on the back of his couch shutting his eyes. First he had to contend with a possible threat and now he was thinking about Haruhi staying with Mori-senpai and Hunny-senpai. He had a headache and still needed to finish some work before he went to bed. He got up and went to get some aspirin. When he sat back down at his computer, he took a deep breath and thought, "Well at least I know she is safe when she is with those two. They won't let anything happen to her and they are more deadly than the Ootori private police force."

_(At the Haninozuka Mansion)_

The three hosts were in the media room watching a movie and eating popcorn, well Hunny was eating cake. When the movie was over, Hunny turned to Haruhi and said, "What did you want our help with Haru-Chan? You know we will help you if we can." Hunny looked to his cousin who nodded his agreement.

"Well, Kyoya and I are planning on giving the twins a taste of their own medicine for what they did to Tamaki with the firecrackers. We are trying to come up with the best plan possible and I was thinking you could help come up with some ideas. I know Kyoya was going to keep it between us for right now, but I figured you might be able to help," she said smiling at her two sempai.

"No wonder you looked so evil Haru-chan. I think Kyo-Chan might be rubbing off on you, but you can count on us to help!" Hunny-senpai laughed. "The thing you are going to have to do to get the best reaction is…. to separate them." He said this last part as a whisper like his was conspiring.

Haruhi couldn't help but laugh at him and his sneaky tones. She knew that he could be manipulating with his boyish charms and he was strong, but it turns out he could be a conniving plotter also. Her mind was off of everything else that happened today and she was truly having fun.

_(Kasanoda)_

"Tetsuya, do you understand what you need to do?" Ritsu asked his friend.

"Yes, sir I understand. I will see what I can find out and report back to you as soon as possible. I will also get the word out," Tetsuya said. He bowed and left. He would do what he could for the young lord, but he also considered Haruhi a friend. He did not want to see her hurt and he could understand why everyone was taking caution and acting before anything happened.

Kasanoda took a deep breath and released it. Tetsuya was one of his most trusted members of his "family", but he was also a good friend. While he did his part, Ritsu would start contacting some of the other Yakuza heads and make sure that they knew Haruhi was under his protection. He wondered if the second year would really be stupid enough to do something in retaliation for what happened today, but he would rather over react now and nothing happen, than to wait and something happen later. She was too important to too many people for something to happen to her. He would make sure that she was taken care of.

He thought back to their first year in high school and smiled. He wanted friends and she was there ready to get to know him for him. She didn't care about the fact that he was Yakuza or the fact that he looked scary. She looked past that. When he found out that she was a girl, he wound up falling for her. Over time, he realized that he wasn't in love with her, but she was still a good friend and would always hold a special place in his heart. All of the hosts had become his friend and through them, he was able to make other friends. He appreciated and cherished the friends he had made.

_(Hikaru and Kaoru)_

"Hikaru, do you think she is ok?" Kaoru asked his twin. He was worried about his friend.

"Yah, I do. Kyoya-senpai was arranging security for her and I am sure he is having all of her moves monitored. We will see her on Monday, but let's call her in the morning to make sure she is ok," Hikaru responded. He was worried to. He loved her and knew his brother did also. They still needed to talk about that, but neither had brought it up yet. He knew they would have cancelled this trip to stay with her if they could have, but knew with Kyoya in charge, she would be safe.

_(Tamaki)_

"Mommy, is our daughter alright? I am worried about her. I got a text saying she was ok, but I want to make sure that she is. You know she won't say anything if she really is hurting. You know how she is. She doesn't want to burden us," Tamaki had gotten to his hotel room and decided to call his best friend. He wanted to make sure that Haruhi was alright. He knew the ties Akio had and worried.

"Yes, Tamaki she is. I have arranged security for her and tonight she is staying with Hunny-senpai at his house. She is fine. I have also called Kasanoda to enlist his help to make sure she stays safe. Don't worry about anything here. I will talk to you later." Kyoya hung up the phone with Tamaki and sighed. He figured Tamaki would call him as soon as he could and he knew that he would work himself up. Out of everyone in the club, the so called king was the most dramatic. He wondered how Haruhi put up with it as long as she did.

Tamaki looked at the phone when the call was disconnected and laid down on the bed. He knew that Kyoya would have security settled, but that didn't mean that he didn't worry. She was important to him and he would feel better when he knew everything was past them. He decided to take a shower and go to bed after sending one more text to Haruhi. Tomorrow he would call her.

_(Akio)_

"I can't believe she rejected me again. Then those so called hosts kicked me out of the club. How dare they? They don't have the right to do that! They cannot treat me like I am beneath them when they treat a mere commoner as an equal. They will not get away with this!" Akio yelled.


	10. Planning

Disclaimer… I don't own OHSHC and I won't ever in this lifetime (or the next one).

**A/N – Thank you everyone for taking the time and reading this story. I love all reviews, so please R&R when you get the chance. **

Chapter 10 – Planning

Haruhi awoke the next morning with a crick in her neck and her cell phone ringing. She had stayed up most of the night with Hunny-senpai and Mori-senpai watching movies and had fallen asleep in one of the chairs. When she heard her phone ringing, she woke up with a start and fell off of the couch reaching for her phone. "Hello," she said in an irritated voice.

"Good morning Haruhi," Kyoya said on the other line smirking. He was a humored by how out of sorts she sounded this morning. "Did I wake you up?"

"Morning Kyoya-senpai, it is fine. I was just getting up," she hoped he didn't detect the lie in her voice.

"Well that is good. What time did you want to meet to go over our plan? It is 10:30 now. I can meet you for lunch if you would like and we could start planning what we want to do."

"Yah, that sounds good Senpai. Can you pick me up at Hunny-Senpai's house?"

"Yes, I will be there at about noon. Is that ok?"

"Seen you then Senpai," she said with a smile and hung up the phone. She looked around the room and noticed that neither one of her friends were in the room. She decided to go look for them before she got ready to go.

As soon as she opened the door to the media room a maid was waiting for her to direct her to the dining room for brunch. When she entered, she saw Mori and Hunny sitting at the table waiting for her.

"Haru-Chan, did you sleep ok? Sorry we weren't there when you woke up, but we had morning practice and didn't want to wake you up this morning when we got up. When we got back in, the maid said you were on the phone."

"Yah, it was ok, but I think I slept funny since my neck is a little sore. It will be fine though," she said moving her neck to make it feel better. Mori saw the wince of pain that crossed her face when she tried to move her neck and got up. "What are you doing Mori-senpai?" She asked when he puts his hands on her neck and started rubbing.

"Don't worry Haru-Chan; Takashi knows some techniques that can help with your neck. He is just trying to make it feel better," Hunny-senpai said as a cake was placed on the table for him.

After another minute of rubbing, Mori-senpai stopped and Haruhi was surprised that the pain was significantly less. She barely felt it now. She smiled up at the tall man, "Thank you Senpai! It feels a lot better."

He nodded to her and gave a small smile back. Then he walked over to a chair and pulled it out for her to sit. She did and started putting things on her plate. She knew she was meeting Kyoya for lunch, but she was hungry now and couldn't wait another couple of hours before she ate. She would save room though for her strategy meeting with Kyoya.

"What are your plans for today Haru-Chan?" Hunny-senpai asked while he was eating cake.

"Well Kyoya-senpai is going to pick me up and we are going to start planning what to do to the twins. He will pick me up at noon. Is it ok if I stay here until then?"

"Yah, stay as long as you would like and if you and Kyo-Chan want, you can meet here and we can help you with the planning," he said wearing a very sneaky look on his face. Haruhi knew that when she saw that look, she never wanted to cross him or be on the opposite end of his vengeance ever.

"Well, I think he was planning on it being a lunch meeting, but I will ask him. Ok?"

"Call and ask him. If he is ok with it being here, I will get our cook to make a gourmet meal. Are you ok to stay Takashi?"

His cousin nodded, "I don't have anything else today, so I can stay."

"Ok then, let me go call Kyoya-senpai and ask him what he wants to do." Haruhi got up to go retrieve the phone she left in the media room and make the call. She came back a few minutes later and said that Kyoya agreed to have the planning session there. Mori-senpai nodded and Hunny-senpai yelled and jumped around (he was a bit excited). Haruhi just smiled at them. She was wondering why Kyoya-senpai sounded a little disappointed when she talked to him, but she figured she was wrong. There was no reason that he would be disappointed. They finished brunch and Haruhi went to go get ready for the arrival of Kyoya.

Haruhi had just gotten out of the shower and was about to get dressed when her phone started ringing. She recognized the ring tone for the twins, so she ignored it figuring she would finish getting ready and then call them back. As soon as the ringing stopped, it started again. The twins were calling back and she knew that they would keep doing that until she answered the phone. "You know if someone doesn't answer the phone right away, there might be a reason. Why don't you give it a couple of minutes?"

"Haruhi! We were worried and we had to make sure that you were still in one piece," Kaoru whined into the phone.

"I'm fine you two. I am actually at Hunny-Senpai's house right now. So you know I am perfectly safe with him around," she said laughing.

"Why are you at his place?" Hikaru asked with an edge. If she was there, that meant that Mori-senpai was probably there as well.

"I stayed here last night and watched movies with him and Mori-senpai so that I wasn't alone."

"You could have come out here with us," they both said together.

"No, I couldn't have. I have other things to do this weekend and I had to meet my new body guard. Don't worry about anything guys. I am safe and I have security. Kyoya-senpai is making sure everything is taken care of. You guys need to just worry about having fun."

"But we would have so much more fun if you were here with us," Hikaru turned on the whiney voice also.

"Maybe next time, now I have to finished getting dressed since you were rude and would not let me get clothes on before you psycho dialed me."

"Hmmm does this mean you are naked?" They asked in unison.

"Not completely. Now I have to go you perverts. I will see you on Monday," she hung up the phone and finished getting ready.

When she was about to step out of the guest room she was using, Tamaki had decided to call. Before she could say any greeting, he was yelling into the phone, "Are you ok Haruhi? I am so worried about you! My daughter is there all alone and without me to protect her."

"Tamaki, we already had the discussion about your over active imagination. I am ok. I am with Hunny-senpai and Mori-senpai right now. I also have a body guard. Remember? I will be fine."

"Maybe I should come home early and make sure you are taken care of," he said questioningly.

"Don't you dare come home early! I will see you on Monday. I am fine and if I see you before Monday, I will make you regret it. You know I have my ways Tamaki. Just have fun and I will talk to you later." She heard his gulp before she hung up on him and walked to the media room where she was supposed to meet Hunny and Mori.

When she opened the door, she only saw Mori-senpai, "Mori-senpai, where is Hunny-senpai. I figured you would both be here before me especially since I was stopped by calls from the twins and Tamaki.

"Talking to the cook," he replied smiling. He was thinking how cute she looked when she scrunched her nose and told him who had called her. "I thought you liked the twins and Tamaki."

"I do. I love them all, but they can be a bit annoying. Tamaki is a bit too dramatic for me and the twins are a bit too mischievous. Sometimes I wondered how I ended up with Tamaki, but he is a good guy. Just makes a better friend," she said with a small smile.

He understood what she was saying and gave her a small nod. It was a question that went through all of the hosts minds at one time or another. She and Tamaki didn't seem like they would suit, but they made it work for over a year, so there had to have been something there. The twins were a lot to handle and sometimes went overboard, which was currently the reason for the meeting they were about to have. They needed a taste of their own medicine. He just hoped that they could take what they could dish. Not everyone can.

Hunny-senpai came in the room shortly after and was followed by Kyoya. He looked at Haruhi and gave a small smile and said hi. He then looked at Mori-senpai and told him hello, but without the smile. The smile he gave Haruhi was not missed by the two oldest hosts.

Since they needed a place with a table, they decided to move to the library and Kyoya started the meeting, "As I am sure Haruhi had informed you, we are devising a planning that will allow us to pull a prank on Hikaru and Kaoru. A bit of retaliation for what they did to Tamaki a few weeks ago. I must ask for the utmost secrecy in regards to this plan because we do not want the two of them to find out what is happening. Do I have your word?" All three of the other occupants nodded their agreement. "Excellent, now let's begin. Hunny-senpai, Haruhi told me what you said about separating them from each other. Depending on what we decide to do today, that may be a key factor in getting results. Any other ideas that we need to figure into the plans in order to make sure they are effective?"

Mori-senpai nodded, "Haruhi is one of their weaknesses."

"Good point Mori-senpai. We will need to keep that in mind also. Thank you," Kyoya replied back.

"Excuse me? I don't think that I am." Haruhi tried to argue, but quickly shut up when everyone else gave her a look with a raised brow. She knew that look. It was saying, "You must be demented if you believe that one."

The meeting continued on for another hour before they decided to break for lunch and made their way to the dining room. "Thank you Hunny-senpai for letting us meet here and providing lunch. I think bringing you and Mori-senpai into the fold was a good idea and you have provided a lot of ideas," Kyoya said as they sat down.

"You're welcome Kyo-chan. After lunch, we can finish the meeting. I can't wait to see their faces when we get them for everything they have done," Hunny-senpai said evilly.

Kyoya had to wonder what was truly hidden underneath his cute exterior, "I will get in touch with some scientists I know after we are done here. I would use the chemistry club at Ouran, but I don't want anything to leak out about this."

Everyone nodded and started to eat lunch. They would finish their planning and decide who needed to do what after lunch. All three were thinking, "I can't wait to see their faces. This is going to be fun."

_(Hikaru and Kaoru)_

"Kaoru, can I talk to you about something?" Hikaru asked his brother when they had a few moments to themselves that morning.

"You know you can talk to me about anything," Kaoru responded.

"It's about Haruhi."

Kaoru immediately stopped what he was doing and sat down on the couch, "Oh."

Hikaru didn't miss the sad expression that plastered itself on his brother's face, "How do you feel about her? I want the truth and not you trying to hold back to save my feelings."

"I love her. I always have and now that she is not with Tamaki, part of me wants to go after her. What about you?"

"I love her too. I never stopped and I feel the same way, but I don't want to hurt you. I will be honest, if I lost her and you won her, I don't know if I could deal with that," Hikaru said sadly.

"I feel the same way. So what do we do? Forget about going after her and get over our feelings? Can we even do that?" Kaoru said dejected.

"I don't know. You are my brother and you are the last person I want to lose. If you can't deal with me being with her and I can't deal with you being with her, what else is there to do? Can you come up with a different solution? And before you say it, I don't think she would be into sharing."

Kaoru laughed at his brother. Although he was probably half serious, he was also trying to joke and it got the desired results, "True. So do we help one of the other hosts win her heart?"

"We could, but I think before we do that, we need to decide who deserves her the most."

"You know, she is going to have some say in this. We have never been very good at predicting what she will do or what her feelings will be.

"Exactly, that is why we have to observe and then plot," Hikaru said with a gleam in his eye. He may have to step back and not be able to go for her heart, but he would make sure that she ended up with someone who was deserving of her. It would hurt to see her with someone else, but it would have killed him to see her with his brother. Kaoru had the same feelings.

"So Monday at school, we will start our recognizance mission and gather the information that will help us with our plan." They said together. The twins were on their way to their next plan of attack and if some jokes were thrown in along the way, it just made it that much better.

_(Akio)_

"I don't care Katashi what you have been told. You are my cousin and I need help! She has to pay for what she did to me. No one can humiliate me like that!"

"Akio, she is under the protection of the Kasanoda syndicate. Do you really think I will be able to do anything to her and not pay with my own life? In addition, I heard that she has security from the Ootori. I am not sure why you think she is just some plane commoner, but she apparently is very important to a lot of people. I refuse to lose my life so that you can get your revenge. You will need to come up with something else that does not involve me. I have already been ordered not to touch her. Since they know I am your cousin, I know they will be watching me. Now good-bye and don't bother me about this again!" Katashi hung up on his cousin. He was right, he was being watched and his call was monitored; everything was going to be reported to Ritsu Kasanoda. Katashi wasn't sure why this girl was so important, but he was not going to get involved.

"Fucking coward! What am I supposed to do now?" Akio yelled. He started to pace in his room when an idea occurred to him. He could easily hire street thugs and have them take care of matters for him. It would be less likely for it to lead back to him since she lives in the poor part of town. Now he just needed to find the right goons and he knew where to start looking. He grabbed his keys and jumped in his car. He needed to start putting things in order now. Taking care of her, would make all of them pay. He may not be able to touch the other hosts or their families, but he could hurt them by hurting her. It was a perfect plan. He would succeed and he would win.

**A/N – Now is your chance to vote for Mori or Kyoya. Let me know who you would like Haruhi to end up with. **


	11. Revenge - Part 1

Disclaimer…. I don't own Ouran or its characters; I just use them for my fan fic stories.

**A/N… You still have time to vote for Mori or Kyoya. Sorry, but everyone else is out of the running. I just could split up the twins in this story.**

Chapter 11 – Revenge part 1

Kyoya snapped his phone shut and turned to the other three occupants in the room, "We can actually get everything rigged tomorrow and the plan will be in effect for Monday unless we want to wait a little bit longer. I do think we have the perfect plan though." Kyoya was beyond satisfied with the plan they came up with together. It would get the best results and cause the least amount of damage to others and the school.

"I think the sooner we do this, the less likely they will figure out that something is going on and the less likely someone will slip Kyoya-senpai," Haruhi said giving her approval to act swiftly.

Mori-senpai nodded as his cousin said, "The sooner we act the less chance of something interfering. If we act and get it set up on the weekend, we won't have to worry about other people seeing something they shouldn't. Are we going to tell Tama-Chan what we are doing? He is the only one not here."

"No, our king doesn't do very well with keeping secrets or acting nonchalant. He would spoil it by trying to be where he shouldn't and causing suspicion," Kyoya stated as he pushed his glasses back up to the bridge of his nose. Everyone agreed and decided to meet up at the school tomorrow to help get everything set up and go over the plan one more time.

"Haruhi, do you need a ride home?" Kyoya asked Haruhi as they were packing up their stuff in Hunny-Senpai's library.

"Yes, Kyoya-senpai, I would appreciate that," she said smiling at her senior.

Hunny-senpai looked on with interest. He had been watching the girl and her interactions for a long time now. She was still clueless as to how everyone felt. He knew that his cousin's biggest rival would be Kyoya and maybe Hikaru, but he couldn't be sure where either of the twins stood for sure. He wanted Haruhi to be happy, but what would make him ecstatic would be for her to be happy with his cousin. They were two of his favorite people and he felt that they would be perfect together. However, he could see what the appeal of all of the hosts would be to her, and he wasn't just talking about looks and fortune (neither of those held too much appeal for her, she always said it was what was on the inside that mattered most).

Kyoya and Haruhi said good-bye to the older hosts and left the Haninozuka mansion and made their way back to Haruhi's neighborhood. Kyoya could seem to stop looking at her, and thankfully, she had yet to catch on. "Haruhi, it is almost 7:00. Would you like to join me for dinner? I can always take you home afterward. It will be my treat for helping me with the planning stage of retribution against the twins." He saw her give him an appraising look, like she was trying to decide what to say and as if reading her thoughts he said, "Don't worry, I won't add this to your debt. I promise. It is just a thank you. So, would you like to join me for dinner?"

She gave him one last look before smiling and answering, "Sure Senpai, I will join you for dinner."

"Excellent!" He told the driver the change of plans and turned back towards her, "I find this really good French café not too far from here if that is alright with you."

"That sounds really good. I haven't had French food in a while. Tamaki loves it, but he hardly ever took me," she said with another smile.

She could completely disarm him with a simple smile and yet she was so clueless about her power. He nodded at her and turned back to the window to collect his thoughts.

"I can't wait to see the looks on their faces when they come into school on Monday. Promise me you will have it rigged to just get them. My desk is in between theirs during first period. I don't want to turn blue or purple." Haruhi said with a smirk on her face.

"Not to worry, I will make sure that you will be dye free."

"I know when they initially try to get it off, it will spread, but will it eventually wash off?"

"Yes, I will give them a special cleanser that will neutralize the dye and it will come off, but of course that won't happen until after we remove their blindfolds," he was smirking already foreseeing the reaction for the trouble makers. He wasn't really sure why he was retaliating, but he knew they had crossed the line and had planned to just scare them. Haruhi had changed his mind when she offered to help him get revenge on them and their twisted ways. He would do almost anything for her.

They arrived at the café and the driver got out and opened up his door. He reached in with his hand and helped her out of the car. She was blushing a little bit when she emerged and couldn't figure understand why, "He is just being nice and he is a good friend, albeit a greedy one at times. Why can I not stop blushing around the damn hosts? I should be used to all of their ways by now. UGH!"

Kyoya guided her into the restaurant and was curious about the look on her face ever since she got out of the car. He saw the blush and then he saw her brows draw together like she was upset at something. He hoped that he didn't do anything that she was mad about. He tried to think of his actions and he couldn't think of anything that would be wrong.

She looked up when they walked in and saw Daichi watching the door, waiting for them. She gave him a little smile and wave when she saw him. He nodded back to acknowledge her. He seemed to be on edge, but she figured it was because they were in a public place. "Kyoya-senpai, what is Daichi doing here? I figured since I was with you and your guard, he would be off."

"No, he is to protect you at all times. He let you go with Mori-senpai and Hunny-senpai because he knew that they could protect you themselves and he was still working on getting a lay of the land, but that will not be the norm. Get used to seeing him Haruhi, he will be basically shadowing you and making sure that no harm comes to you. I know you may not understand everything, but I have my reasons for being overly cautious when it comes to Akio."

They sat down towards the back of the restaurant and let the guards monitor the front of the small restaurant before she responded, "I know you do. Hunny-senpai and Mori-senpai told me about him."

"They did, did they? I wish they wouldn't have. It may have given you unnecessary worry."

"No, I am glad they told me. Now I understand the situation a little more and am not as adverse to your security orders like I was before. It makes sense and I will admit to you that it does make me a little afraid of what he may try. I hope he doesn't though."

He watched her as she talked and noticed her worry and fear. She looked like she got the chills as she finished her statement. He grabbed her hand to try to reassure her and said, "Don't worry. I have assigned one of my best body guards to you and he has a good team at his disposal. We will make sure nothing happens to you."

He gave her a small smile and she returned it. She was still worried, but knowing she had her friends behind her along with a private police force, made her feel better. "Ok Senpai. Now, what is good to eat here?"

He laughed at how she could change the subject so easily and started to look at the menu. When their waitress showed up she took their orders and gave a flirtatious look at Kyoya. He didn't seem to notice her, but Haruhi noticed the look and it bothered her a bit. She wasn't sure why, but figured it was probably because she was sitting at the table alone with Kyoya. She was thinking, "How did the waitress know it wasn't a date? What if it was a date? No one should give a look like that to a guy and try to catch their attention if a guy was alone with a girl at dinner or any meal for that matter."

Kyoya always notices everything and he noticed the disgruntled look she gave the waitress after the waitress had tried to catch his eye and when that failed gave a look of longing. He thought that was a positive sign indeed.

They finished dinner and Kyoya paid the bill. He threw away the phone number that the waitress slipped him. He wasn't interested in her, she wasn't Haruhi and right now that was the only girl he was interested in.

They both got into the limo with Daichi and drove to Haruhi's apartment. She wasn't sure if she was ready to be alone, but she would have to deal with it sooner or later. She decided later was a better option, even though she knew she wasn't truly alone since she had Daichi, "Kyoya-senpai, would you like to come in for a cup of tea?"

He looked at her a little surprised. He figured she would want to study or have some alone time, but then understood. She was still a little shaken up, "Yes, that would be nice."

They got to her complex and went upstairs to find her door slightly ajar. Daichi went in first to make sure the area was safe. Nothing seemed out of place and no one was there, but taped to one of the cupboard doors in the kitchen was a note that said, "We will come back for you another time Bitch. You better watch your back!"

"K-K-Kyoya, someone was here. They broke into the apartment. What if my dad had been here?" She was freaking out and was starting to shake.

Kyoya pulled her into his arms and held her. He was trying to comfort her, but he was shaken up also. "Daichi, see what you can find here. I am taking her with me. Get more men to watch the apartment if you need to." He then turned to the girl in his arms, "Let's go. You will stay with me for now. We will call your father once we are in the car and make sure he can stay with someone for a couple of days. If not, he can stay at my house also."

She just nodded. She was in shock and didn't know what to say. If she had been home or if her father had been home, she was not sure what would have happened. Did Akio really want to hurt her and get revenge just because she turned him down? She didn't understand.

When they got into the car, Kyoya immediately call Ranka. He explained some of the situation to Haruhi's dad and asked if he had a friend he could stay with for a couple of days. Ranka was worried, but understood and told Kyoya that he did have a place to stay. He also asked to speak to his daughter. Kyoya gave her the phone.

"Haruhi, are you ok? I am worried about you. Just make sure you listen to what Kyoya says and don't worry about me."

"Dad, are you ok? Maybe I should come stay with you." Haruhi was worried about her father and worried about something happening to her friends.

"No, you stay with Kyoya. That is going to be the best place for you right now. I have a place to stay and I will see you in a couple of days. I will call you tomorrow morning. Ok?"

She nodded and realized she needed to speak, "Ok dad. Be careful will you?"

"I will. I love you and I will see you soon. Now give the phone back to Kyoya." She handed the phone to her senpai, "Kyoya please make sure you take care of my baby. She is all I have left."

"I will sir. Don't worry about that. I have my men working on finding the culprit now."

"I knew you would. I will call tomorrow morning. Good-bye." The call was disconnected and Kyoya placed the phone back in his pocket.

He looked over at his small companion and she was physically shaking and had her arms wrapped around herself. He put his arm around her and pulled her to his side, "It will be alright. I am sure Daichi and his team will find whoever did this and will catch him. I just hope we also find the connection to Akio and if we do, I will make sure he pays."

She just nodded. She barely heard anything that he said. She felt lost for one of the first times of her life and she didn't like the feeling. She liked to be in control and she did not have control of this situation.

Kyoya continued to hold her until they reached his house. Then he helped her out of the car and led her up to his mansion. They walked in the door and were greeted by a butler and a maid. The maid told Haruhi that she would show her to the guest room she would be staying in, but she didn't want to budge from Kyoya's side. She knew him, he was safe to her. The maid looked a little lost as to what to do, but Kyoya spoke up, "I will show her to the room shortly. Is it the one next door to my room?"

"Yes, master Ootori." The maid said before she bowed and then started to walk away.

Kyoya stopped her before she got too far, "Please have tea service brought up to my room."

"Yes, sir." She again bowed and made her final retreat.

Kyoya led Haruhi up to his room and sat her down on one of his couches, "Haruhi, do you need anything?"

She shook her head no. She looked up at him at that time and saw the worry that was present, "I will be fine Kyoya-senpai. I was just not prepared for that. Honestly, I think I had myself convinced that you were all over reacting and nothing would happen. I guess I was wrong, wasn't I?"

"I think we were all hoping that we were over reacting. We will find them though. I promise you will be safe." She smiled at his declaration and nodded her head. He released a long breath and looked at her again. "I have to make a quick phone call." Again she nodded and he took out his phone. "Kasanoda, someone broke into her apartment tonight. My men are working on finding anything now. Thank you." He hung up the phone again and put it on the coffee table in front of the couch.

"Why did you call him?" Haruhi asked confused.

"He is the successor of the biggest syndicate in Japan and with Akio's family ties; I wanted to be sure we had all of our bases covered. He can reach certain places more easily than I can," he said as he leaned back against the back of the couch. He kept thinking that tonight was ruined for them. It was supposed to be fun and then they had gone back to her place and found that it had been broken into. Now he was tired and mad. He felt a hand on his arm and when he looked up he saw a small smile. He returned the smile and was about to lean in to give her a small kiss on the cheek when his phone rang, "Kyoya Ootori here. I see, ok. Make sure you keep me informed. Thank you."

She was looking at him for answers, "That was Daichi. They were able to pull some finger prints from the note and are running them now. They also found a shoe print and some other things. Apparently, one of the people that broke in wasn't very smart. There is a lot of trace that was left behind." She smiled knowing that this would bring them one step closer catching the goons. "Are you ready for bed yet? I can show you to the guest room, or if you want, we can watch a movie."

"Movie, please. I am not ready to sleep yet." Honestly, she was tired and exhausted, but she was afraid to close her eyes right now and wasn't ready to be alone. Sitting here in Kyoya's room watching a movie was better than going to a strange room alone and attempting to sleep after the night she has had. She just needed a little bit more time to get her mind off of everything and a movie would help her with that.

"What movie would you like to watch?" He asked.

"You pick. Just not horror or something that is too dramatic. I don't think I could handle that tonight."

"Right. Ok, let's watch a comedy then." He went to look at his collection of movies and picked out a movie he thought she would like. He put in in the Blu-ray player and let it load. Then he hit play and sat back down on the couch next to her.

By the time the movie was finished, both of them had fallen asleep on the couch and did not wake up when it was over. In fact, they didn't wake up until Haruhi's phone was ringing the next morning because her dad was calling her, "Hello?"

"Haruhi! It's daddy! How are you doing? Is Kyoya being nice? Do you need anything? Are you ok dear?" Ranka was not giving her a chance to answer any of the questions he was asking.

"Dad? I am ok. Kyoya is being a nice host and I am fine. How are you? Are you ok?"

"I am fine dear. Don't worry about me. You just keep yourself safe. If you need anything, you call me or tell Kyoya to call me."

"I will dad. I love you."

"I love you too. I have to go into work now. You stay safe."

The line disconnected and she looked at the time on the phone. "What? It's 11:16? UGH!" She put the phone down on the table next to Kyoya's and then looked at her friend next to her. He was slowly waking up and she was wondering if he was going to be mad about being woken up or not. He was not the nicest person in the morning when he first wakes up. "Sorry Senpai. My dad called and I wasn't planning on being in here this morning when he called…" She stopped herself from talking any more when he gave her a shut up look.

He heard the phone ring and then he heard a buzzing that sounded like a voice coming from one side of him. He didn't like to be woken up and when Haruhi started addressing him instead of the phone, he turned to look at the noise that was the cause of his rising before he wanted to. When he was more awake and realized that it was Haruhi sitting next to him, he leaned his head back and then brought it forward again and looked at her, "Sorry, I am not a morning person."

"I know Senpai. Sorry," she responded trying to make the least amount of noise. She didn't want anything beyond the look he had already given her and she definitely didn't want something thrown at her. At this range, he would not miss and it would hurt, A LOT!

"It's ok. Was that your father?"

"Yes, Senpai. He was calling to check in."

He nodded and said, "Well I guess we better get up and get ready. You still have homework to finish and I have a test study for, plus we have to go up to the school to set up. Let me show you to the guest room. All of your stuff should be in there and you can take a shower and get changed. Then if you want, you can come back in here and study until we have to leave."

"Ok, that sounds good. Thank you again Kyoya-senpai. I am grateful for everything you are doing for me." She smiled and kissed his check causing both of them to blush.

After she showered and changed, she grabbed her books and went back into Kyoya's room. Upon entering she saw him at a desk typing on his laptop and breakfast laid out on the coffee table, "I thought you might be hungry, so I had the staff make some breakfast and bring it up here."

"Thank you Senpai," she said staring at the food. She really was hungry.

"You're welcome and Haruhi?" He said looking at her until he had her attention, when she placed her eyes upon him, he continued, "Can you drop the honorific? You called me Kyoya last night. I think we are close enough that you can just call me by my name."

She blushed and agreed. It was awkward, but she would do what he asked.

After they both ate, they worked on school work until it was time to go. They made their way to the limo and then went to the school. Both of them pushed the events from last night into the back of their minds. They had a mission to complete and this was going to be fun.

When they pulled up to the front of the school, Hunny and Mori were already waiting for them. As Kyoya and Haruhi were getting out of the car, another car pulled up behind them. Haruhi stiffened and Kyoya felt it. Daichi was already in front of them since he was the one helping Haruhi out of the car. Hunny and Mori saw what happened and were wondering about it. They would ask later when the new attendee was taken care of.

When Kyoya saw who got out of the other car, he relaxed his stance and told everyone that it was alright. He introduced everyone to Masaru. He was a special effects technician and he would help them rig everything today for tomorrow.

"Well, Ootori-sama has filled me in on what you are planning and I have come to help. Shall we go?" Masaru said after he was introduced to everyone in the group.

They all moved inside the school (Kyoya had a key and the access code since he informed the chairman what they intended to do and he had agreed). Masaru only needed to help with the chairs and the desks since Kyoya had a security team that could help with the video feeds. Once that was done and everything was satisfactory, Masaru was led out of the building and he took off.

With the desks and the chairs rigged as planned, the others went through the rest of the plan and planned it all out. Once the twins ran out of the bathroom, they would be taken and separated. The security team would have all of the necessary video feed up and running by midnight.

After they did a run through of everything, Hunny and Mori decided it was time to ask about earlier, "Haru-Chan, Kyo-Chan is everything ok?"

"Everything is fine Hunny-senpai," Haruhi said in a small attempt at trying to pretend that it was, but the look on her face was not convincing.

Mori looked at both of them and asked, "What happened?"

"Someone broke into her apartment last night. My men are working on locating the suspects now since trace was left. We hope to have them in custody quickly. Then we will know who sent them and I am willing to bet it was Akio. So she is staying with me until we find out who is behind this," Kyoya said trying to stay calm. He was still mad and shaken up by it.

Mori nodded but did not like what he heard. Hunny didn't like it either. Now they were more worried about their female friend and did not want to leave her alone. Mori felt jealousy that Haruhi was staying with Kyoya, but knew that she needed to stay somewhere and since she was with Kyoya last night, it made sense that she stayed with him. That didn't stop him from wanting her to stay at his house though.

"I'm ok Mori-senpai, Hunny-senpai. They were gone before we got there and we left before they decided to come back. I will be fine," she gave a smile to reassure her friends and then hugged both of them. "Let's just worry about our plan and tomorrow."

It was her way of saying that she didn't want to talk about it any longer and they took the hint. They discussed the plan one more time and verified everything was set. The only thing they could do now was to wait for tomorrow and hope nothing else happened in the meantime.


	12. Revenge - Part 2

Disclaimer….. I do not own OHSHC or its characters, but hey its fan fic and we are all having fun and enjoying ourselves.

Chapter 12 – Revenge Part 2

Monday morning arrived and as planned the four conspirators arrived at the school early. Haruhi was normally a bit early to school and would beat the twins every day, but they wanted to be sure that everything was still set up and they were up and running on the video feed. One last run through of the plan and everything was set. They were only waiting on their unsuspecting victims to walk in the door.

The twins typically arrived about 25-30 minutes early in order to give Haruhi a hard time. They would then bug her until right before the bell. If they remained on schedule, they would have a good audience for everything that was about to happen.

While Haruhi waited in the classroom for her fellow hosts, the other three waited in an unused office down the hall that Kyoya managed to get a key to. They were able to monitor almost the whole school on the video feed and they would be able to watch and record what happened in the classroom without actually being there. This was headquarters for the team.

As planned, and as their normal schedule, the twins arrived with flare and started to harass Haruhi upon entering the classroom. She took in all in stride and tried not to get impatient or show that something was going on. These two were sneaky and could usually tell when something was going on. Luckily for her, she had an excuse this morning.

"Haruhi, is everything alright?" Hikaru asked.

"Are you mad that we didn't call again?" Kaoru added.

"Is that your body guard? Is he going to be in your classes with you the whole day?" They both questioned.

"I am fine. No, I am not mad. And yes, that is Daichi. He will be with me, but will be in the hall next to the door during actual class times," she responded with a monotone voice.

"Then what's wrong? Something seems off today." They said together. The hosts watching were worried that something would give them away.

Haruhi was thinking, "Damn busted!" Then she thought about the weekend and decided to use the threat against her and her new security team as her excuse, "Sorry guys, I think this whole situation from last week has me a bit freaked out and then having a shadow all of the time is a bit unnerving."

The three in headquarters were holding their breath to see if the twins bought it. It might have been true, but they needed the targets to actually buy the story.

"Yah, we can see how that would bother you…" Kaoru started.

"And make you seem a bit off." Hikaru finished.

"But don't worry, we are here for you and you will be ok." They said together.

"I know. Thanks guys. Don't worry about me; like I said it is all just a bit unnerving." She was breathing a sigh of relief along with the other three plotters. They bought it.

"Maybe you can come over to our house after host club for a much needed break. We can dress you up in some new fashions," Hikaru suggested.

She cringed inwardly, that was not her idea of fun, "I don't know. I have to get home after school and go to the market." She knew she was lying, but she couldn't tell them that she was staying with Kyoya and she did not want to play dress up.

Just then the bell for class rang and the four realized it was show time. First both of the twins opened their desks and dye exploded onto them. Just missing their eyes, but it got everywhere else. Kyoya had called his scientists and they got a special dye for both of the twins. It would not wash off and if they tried without the right cleanser, it would just spread and stain more of them. Hikaru was Hulk green and Kaoru was Barney purple. After they were hit with the dye, they stumbled back to their chairs, but wound up on the floor. The chairs were rigged to collapse. A crowd of students gathered and looked at the spectacle laughing. The twins lay there in shock for a second.

"Hikaru, Kaoru are you alright? What happened? Maybe you should go to the restroom and try to wash that off," Haruhi said showing concern (fake) for her friends. She was trying not to laugh, but it was just too hard. No one had ever gotten them, but they had gotten a lot of people.

"Right!" They both said together as they jumped up and ran to the nearest restroom. Inside the restroom you could hear they complaining and screaming that the dye was not coming off and now they were even more purple/green than before. Another crowd outside of the restroom was gathered and heard all of this. The four plotters were there as well. All were laughing.

Next four men dressed in black with their faces covered came through the crowd and the four conspirators were able to get everyone to be very quiet. The twins did not need to know that a crowd was surrounding them for the next part of the plan. The four men walked into the bathroom and each twin was grabbed, handcuffed, a gag placed in their mouths to silence them, and a hood put over their heads. They tried to fight and struggle, but they had zero chance against the Ootori private police force. They were carried out of the bathroom and into two waiting cars by the men amidst a silent crowd of students and teachers alike. The twins were placed in the trunks of the cars and off they went.

The twins were each in a different car, separated from each other and not knowing what was happening. Each feared for the other ones safety and their own. They both sent up silent prayers that they would make it out alive and wondered who would do this to them. They struggled and fought to get loose, but nothing worked. They drove around what seemed like an hour or more. Who knows how far outside of the city they now were.

In actuality, they were just driven around the school for an hour to confuse the two boys. When the cars made it back to Ouran, the four men took them to two different rooms that were not being used. The student population was in the auditorium watching the video feed on a monitor. It was the train wreck that they couldn't turn away from. The girls loved the twin hosts and thought this was an elaborate host club drama/play. It was, but that was unknown to the twins. The guys wanted to know what was going on and what the host club was up to. Plus a part of them wanted to see the twins pranked for some of the tricks that they had pulled.

Tamaki was pulled into the plot once the twins were taken away. There wasn't a way for him to disclose or ruin the plot by that time. He saw the twins being carried out from the school and started to run after them when Mori-senpai stopped him. He was carried into headquarters to watch the video feed from the trunks with the other four. Kyoya explained to him what was going on. He laughed that they would do this and the twins be completely unaware.

The current situation temporarily allowed Haruhi to have a break from Tamaki and his overbearing ways when he was around her, but as the hour wore on, her reprieve ended. "Daughter are you ok? No one tried anything this weekend did they? Maybe you should stay with me for now? Daddy will take care of you!" He squeezed her into his arms; cutting off her much needed air supply.

"Tamaki get off of me! Mori-senpai please help!" She yelled. Mori pulled her from Tamaki's embrace and kept her close to his side with his arm around her. He was going to protect her. "Thank you Mori-senpai," she said smiling up at him. He nodded and smiled back at her.

"Haruhi, why did you do that? I was only trying to show you how much I missed you," Tamaki stammered.

"I couldn't breathe and once again you went overboard," she deadpanned. Tamaki found his corner and started to pout and grow more fungus. Haruhi just rolled her eyes at the site. She was used to this by now and decided long ago, the best course of action was to ignore him.

"Enough! Let's get ready, they are pulling back up to the school," Kyoya said.

The hosts would stay in the room while the twins were taken to their separate rooms. There was a mike feed into both rooms with voice distortion they would use to communicate with their victims. It was time for the final part of the plan. It had been previously decided that Mori-senpai would be the voice since he had the scariest voice with the voice distortion they were using. He had agreed reluctantly.

Once the twins were deposited into their rooms, it was show time. The hoods, gags, and cuffs stayed on. They didn't want them to try to feel their way out of the room and realize that it was a classroom.

The twins were placed in the middle of the empty room on a chair and Mori-senpai began to read from his script, "Listen very carefully to everything I am about to say. We have your twin and we will do what we want with him if you do not follow our instructions exactly. Nod if you hear me and understand." Both twins nodded.

"Stand up." Both twins stood at the same time. Hikaru almost fell forward, but was able to catch himself before he face planted on the hard surface. Once he was straight again, Mori continued, "Bow." Both twins bowed. They were afraid of what may happen to their brother and had no clue that each was getting the same set of instructions. Now the four (well five with Tamaki) knew they had the twins where they wanted them. "One of the guards will be in momentarily. He will remove your handcuffs. Do not make any sort of sudden movements or try to attempt anything. Remember we have your brother and we can see everything that you do."

One of the men entered into each of the classrooms and removed the handcuffs. Both brothers rubbed their wrists to get circulation back into them since the hands had been handcuffed behind their back for a while now.

"Now, strip down to your underwear." Each brother hesitated a second before starting to remove their clothes. When they were down to their boxers, they stopped. In the auditorium, girls were fainting and screaming at the sight of the stripping hosts. Kyoya watched the news feed of that also and decided this prank may just increase business for the club.

"Next, do the chicken dance." When each brother started doing the chicken dance, everyone in headquarters lost it. Watching the hooded twins do the chicken dance was just too funny and they could not hold in their laughter. Luckily, Mori-senpai was not pushing the talk button, or they would have been busted.

"Finally, count to 50. Then remove the gag and the hood and step through the door of the room. Count out loud and do not skip or count too fast. Remember we have your brother and we are watching you." Mori-senpai turned off the mike and all of the hosts ran to the hallway the twins were located in. Both were in a classroom across from each other. The hosts had arrived and were waiting for the twins to exit the rooms.

The doors were opened and when the twins saw the other hosts, they knew they were the pranksters. They had wondered why the room looked like a classroom at Ouran, but when the saw the hosts they knew.

They looked at each other and ran to each other's arms, "That was horrible Hikaru!" Kaoru whined.

"I know Kaoru! I could only think that I needed to protect you from harm," Hikaru said.

Both sounded like they were on the verge of tears. Haruhi wondered if they had taken it too far, the other hosts weren't buying it. "Maybe next time you will rethink the fireworks in a locker scheme," Kyoya said menacingly with the lights glaring off of his glasses.

The twins looked dumbfounded for a minute and then started to laugh, "I guess we deserved that one, but just remember there is such a thing as paybacks." Hikaru was trying to be serious when he said this, but it didn't quite come off as well as Kyoya.

"You may want to remember that also you two. Now I suggest both of you get dressed and maybe take a shower. You look like Barney and the Hulk," Kyoya said seriously.

"But it doesn't come off!" Kaoru yelled.

"We are going to be this color the rest of our lives," Hikaru cried.

"Get dressed and follow me to the club room. I have the soap you need to use to get off the dye," Kyoya said smirking.

"What?!" The twins yelled together.

"Where do you think the dye came from? I have many things and people at my disposal. You may want to remember that." They shivered from the look on the Shadow King's face.

The twins got dressed and followed the Shadow King to music room 3. He gave them the soap and told them to wash up and that their spare uniforms were in the back. He then met the other hosts outside of the auditorium and together the five walked in amidst applause, yells, and whistles.

Kyoya walked up on stage and grabbed the mike, "We want to thank everyone for their support of the host club. We hope you enjoyed our presentation of Pranking the Twins and will join us in Music Room 3 for club activities in the future. Thank you and have a good day." Kyoya finished and walked off the stage. The applause and yells were deafening. The chairman got up and told everyone that school was cancelled for the remainder of the day due to this thoroughly enjoyable production (he had already informed the teachers that classes would be disrupted for the day).

The hosts then made their way back to the club room. They were all laughing and talking about the events over the course of the day. The one thing that seemed to get the biggest laugh though was still the chicken dance. Even Mori-senpai was laughing out loud about that.

As they were nearing the doors of the music room, Daichi's phone rang and he answered it as he followed the group. He was not too worried about them entering the music room before him since he had sent a couple of guards from his team into the room to scope it out before the twins got there earlier and the men remained while the rest of the hosts had gone to the auditorium. "Hai!"

"We have found the men and currently have them in custody," the voice on the other end of the phone said.

"Excellent. I will inform Master Ootori. Have they talked yet? We need to know who hired them," he responded.

"Hai! They did not know a name, but they were able to describe him and picked his face out of a photo lineup. It was as the master suspected. It was Akio Tanaka."

"Thank you. Keep them there and we will decide what to do with them later." Daichi hung up the phone and walked into the music room. He looked around the room and spotted Haruhi sitting on a couch working on homework. Satisfied she was ok; he turned and saw Kyoya working on his computer at a table across the room. He strode over to him, "Sir, we have the men in custody and they fingered Akio Tanaka as the man that hired them."

Kyoya knew it was him! He was furious and he squeezed his hands into fists so hard his knuckles were turning white. "Keep them in custody and send someone to pick up that little shit. He will know what it means to go against me and threaten a friend," Kyoya spoke with a deadly calm that frightened even Daichi. Daichi nodded and walked out of the music room to make the call.

Haruhi looked up from her homework. The twins were still using the bathrooms they had in the music room and she had to go to the restroom. She looked around the room for Daichi and didn't see him. She didn't know the other guards and didn't feel comfortable asking them to take her to the potty, so she walked up to Mori-senpai and asked him to escort her. He looked down at his cousin and told him where he was going. When Hunny-senpai nodded, Mori got up and walked with Haruhi to the closest ladies room. He stood outside of the door and waited for her to finish.

She walked in the restroom and finished quickly. As she was washing her hands, another stall door opened and there was the current threat to her existence, Akio. She yelled for Mori and he stormed in not caring about whom else might be in there. Akio was holding a knife to her throat, "I would stay back if I were you Senpai." Akio spit out, "How dare you kick me out of the club room like I am nothing. And this little whore denied me. She rejected me. Who do you think you are rejecting me? I am more important than you will ever be you bitch!" He took the knife he was holding and cut her cheek. Mori was frantic. He did not like seeing anyone cut on her, but he knew that he had to wait to make a move.

Haruhi was flinching at his words. Daichi came running into the restroom at that time. He didn't see his cousin standing guard and he knew that they had not returned. Something had to be wrong and he was right.

Mori saw Daichi come into the room and stop quickly. He looked at him and saw Daichi nod. They had to make a move and get Haruhi away from the crazy student. "Why don't you let her go? If you are mad at the hosts, take me instead."

"I am not that stupid Senpai. I know who you are and what you can do. I also know that for some reason this little whore is special to all of you, so if I deal with her, I get to hurt all of you," Akio sneered.

Mori was worried. His opponent was starting to look crazier and get a cornered look in his eye. This wasn't good. Akio was not in a good frame of mind and he was unpredictable. They had to act. If they let him leave, Haruhi would be dead. If they rushed him, she could get hurt or worse dead, but they didn't have much of a choice in the matter. With one last nod to Daichi and a confirmation nod, Mori moved quickly, faster than he had ever moved before.

Akio saw the man move and decided he needed to strike quickly, but before he could stab his target, he was grabbed. The knife was only able to stab less than an inch into her side, not life threatening, but it was bleeding and she needed help. Daichi took Akio from Mori and he knelt down to the girl lying on the floor pulling her into his arms. He called Kyoya to get an ambulance quickly and told him where they were. The hosts came running and a few minutes later, the ambulance arrived. They loaded Haruhi onto a gurney and placed her in the ambulance. Mori wouldn't let her go without him and refused to let go of her hand. Haruhi held onto him tight as well, so the paramedics allowed him to ride to the hospital with them while the rest of the host club followed behind in a limo. They were worried.

Daichi turned Akio over to his men that had been in the music room and told them to put him in one of the solitary cells at headquarters. They nodded and took him away. He went to the hospital. He was worried about his young charge and about the hosts. He saw the look on their faces when she was lying on the floor. He knew they all cared about her, but of course that was evident in the fact that he was told to protect her. Unfortunately, he didn't do a very good job of it since she got injured and was on her way to a hospital. He had failed.

Mori-senpai had the same feelings that Daichi had. He should have been able to protect her better. He kept replaying everything in his mind and thinking, "What if I had gone into the bathroom first to make sure it was safe? It shouldn't have mattered that it was for ladies or that girls had gone in and come out as they had walked up to the bathroom." There were so many what ifs. He consoled himself that she was not injured that badly and that they were not life threatening, but she was still injured and she would need to be treated and stitched up.

The hosts following in the limo were quiet. Each had their own thoughts, but no one, not even Kyoya, was blaming Mori or Daichi. They were grateful that they were able to get to her before she was more seriously hurt. They just wanted to make it to the hospital and know that she was going to be alright.

Kyoya took a deep breath and pulled out his phone. Someone had to call Ranka and let him know what happened. He had to leave a message for the man on his voice mail. He was not looking forward to that conversation. He just needed to know she was ok and then he could breathe again.

**A/N: Thank you everyone for reading my story. Please review. **


	13. Guilt Ridden

Disclaimer… I do not own Ouran High School Host Club and I don't own the characters, but all of you knew that.

Chapter 13 – Guilt Ridden

Eight men sat in the waiting room at the Ootori hospital waiting for news about their favorite female host. Haruhi was expected to be fine, but needed to be sewn up since the wounds on her side and face were deep enough to need stitches. Kyoya had called in one of the best plastic surgeons to do the work. He didn't want her to look at the scars and have nightmares or bad memories about what had happened today. He knew she probably didn't care as much as someone else in the club about the scars, but he did not want to take the chance. She was too precious and had so much to look forward to. If any of them could lessen the anguish in any way, they would do it and that included calling in a plastic surgeon. He would also see to it that the Fujioka family would not get a bill in regards to this hospital trip.

The six male hosts, one worried father, and one guilt ridden body guard were all waiting and were worried. Kyoya was able to talk to Haruhi's father right before everyone walked into the hospital. When his phone rang and he had seen the name on his caller id, he cringed. He did not want to have this conversation with Ranka. He wouldn't want to have this conversation with any parent. After he had told the older man what happened, he informed the father that he was sending a car to pick him up to bring him to the hospital. The call was disconnected and within 20 minutes Ranka was there and walking into the host occupied waiting room.

Ranka didn't blame any of them for what happened. Based on what he had heard, the body guard and silent host had saved his baby. She was alive with minor injuries thanks to them. He understood why Mori-senpai stayed outside of the bathroom instead of going in, but there was that thought in the back of his mind of would it have been different if he would have gone in and made sure the lunatic wasn't there. Ranka shook his head; a man that angry and crazy would have found a way to get to his daughter. He was lucky and happy that there had been people there to help.

As they waited, Ranka looked at the face of each host. He saw the look of concern on all of the faces. He knew his daughter was important to all of them and knew that they would do anything for her. They may not want to admit it or always show it (as in the case of Kyoya and Mori-senpai), but she had wormed her way into their hearts and lives. They were better men for it. He also noticed the guilty and anguished look on the tallest host's face and realized that Takashi Morinozuka was in love with his daughter. He chuckled to himself and thought, "They probably all were in some shape or form."

"Takashi, may I speak to you for a second please?" Ranka asked Mori.

Mori nodded and walked out of the room following Ranka down the hall so that they could have some privacy. When they were alone, Mori looked into the father's eyes and spoke, "I am sorry Ranka-san. Because of my lack of foresight, your daughter was injured today. I will understand if you hate me and blame me. It was my fault. I will also understand if you do not want me to be around Haruhi any longer. I wasn't able to protect her like I should have." Mori looked at the ground after his speech and jumped a little when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Takashi, I do not blame you. If it wasn't for you, Haruhi would probably be hurt worse or dead. You saved her today and she is alive because of you and that body guard. A crazy man with revenge on the mind will wait and find a way to his target no matter how long it takes. He would have gotten to her somehow and it might have ended up worse than a couple of stitches. I thank you for saving her. Do not feel guilty because of what happened today. You and Daichi did what you could in that situation. It was not your fault. The only person I blame is the person that cut her with the knife. Ok?" Ranka was looking at the tall man in front of him and hoped he truly listened to what he had to say. At his nod, Ranka hugged him and told him thank you once again and then left him standing there as he walked back to the waiting room. He knew Mori needed to work through his guilt on his own, but he hoped what he said helped him.

Mori stood there in the hall processing what Ranka said. He knew the father was right, but he still felt guilty. When he closed his eyes, he saw Akio cut her cheek and stick the knife in her side. He remembered his fear as he held her and watched her bleed as he put pressure on the stomach wound. He was so afraid of losing her today, and realized he still might if she blamed him for her injuries today. He looked up and saw the doctor walk towards the waiting room. He hurried back down the hall.

As the doctor walked into the occupied waiting area, everyone looked up. Mori-senpai walked in behind him. The doctor looked back to the tall scary man behind him and hoped that he would make it out of here alive. He knew that with the son of the owner involved, he needed to be in top form and do his best work on this girl. He cleared his throat and asked to speak to the father.

"You can speak in front of them also. They are just as much her family as I am," Ranka said surprising everyone in the room. They were her school family and her best friends, and they had a right to hear what was happening. He knew they all wanted to know and letting them all hear what the doctor had to say without having to repeat anything, was better for all concerned.

"Yes, well alright then. Your daughter received a two inch long cut on her right cheek. We were able to stitch it up and it should have minimal scarring, but there will be a small scar. The wound on her side was a bit more severe. The knife used was jagged and the stab wound was a little over an inch long. The good news is that the knife went less than an inch inward and did not hit anything. The bad news is that it did bleed quite a bit. We were able to stitch that up as well, but she did need a transfusion due to the blood loss. We also went ahead and gave her some IV antibiotics to stave off infection. Due to the blood loss, I want to keep her overnight just to monitor her. If no complications arise, you can take her home tomorrow. She will need to take it easy for the next few days and then she can get up and start moving around. I would recommend she stay home from school for at least a week. We can re-evaluate her after a week and see how she is healing. She may need more time off of school, but we will cross that bridge later. Do you have any questions for me?"

Everyone was breathing a sigh of relief at the doctor's words that she would be ok, but they were a little worried and freaked out that she had to have a transfusion. Everyone was silent looking at everyone else. Ranka spoke up, "It does not appear that we do have any questions right now. When can I see her? Or I guess I should say we."

"She is getting moved to her room now, so you should be able to see her in a few minutes. I will have the nurse come get you when she gets to her room. I will not put a limit on the number of visitors since she is not in ICU, but please remember that she will need to rest." Everyone nodded and the doctor turned to leave the room. He had to skirt around the intimidating man behind him and released a breath that he survived the ordeal.

Everyone in the waiting room was offering prayers of thanksgiving for the news that Haruhi was going to be fine. She had survived the lunatic's attack and she would be back to normal soon enough. Ranka was not looking forward to telling his daughter that she would be out of school for a week and maybe more. She hated missing school. "Maybe I can let Kyoya break that news to her," he thought to himself.

Soon enough the nurse came to retrieve everyone to take them to Haruhi's room. She did not realize the son of the owner was in the crowd and knew she needed to be professional and not delay them any longer. "If you all will follow me, I will take you to Miss Fujioka's room. She is still sleeping, but should wake up soon. Please make sure that you let her rest as much as possible. She may be in a bit of pain from her side, but that will be normal. We have given her some medicine for that."

The group followed her to the designated room and stopped just outside of the closed door. "Ranka, why don't you go in and see her first alone and when you are ready, we will come in at that time." Kyoya knew that the father probably wanted a little bit of alone time with his daughter first and this was confirmed when Ranka smiled and thanked him before walking into the room alone.

He looked at everyone gathered around the room and no one was arguing or had a defiant look at his decision. They all knew it was the right one. His eyes fell on Daichi, the body guard assigned to protect Haruhi. He had been on the phone organizing the troops to pick up Akio when Haruhi decided she needed to go to the rest room. She was at least smart enough not to go alone. The guard looked like he was beating himself up about what happened. "Daichi, follow me."

The body guard looked up from his position along the wall and nodded. He followed his employer to an empty family room a couple of doors down. "Master Ootori, I apologize for my failure to protect your friend. It was due to my carelessness that she is injured and in the hospital. I submit myself to your mercy and understand if I need to find employment elsewhere." Daichi bowed towards his young employer waiting for the worst.

"Daichi, I did not call you in here to punish, fire, or berate you." The other man's head snapped up and looked at the youngest Ootori son. "I brought you in here because I wanted to tell you that it was not your fault. Just like it is not Mori-Senpai's fault that this happened. You were following my orders by organizing a task force to apprehend that monster. Due to you and Mori-senpai, she is alive and only had minor injuries. You are not going to be fired and you do not need my mercy. I do not blame you. I do want you to still protect her though. I am not sure his family will not try something when they find out we have him in custody. Make sure that anyone that enters the room is approved by me and has been checked out thoroughly before they enter. The only people from school allowed into her room or her apartment will be the hosts. Ranka is her only family."

"Yes, sir I will do that. I understand. I will get the list of people working this ward today and tomorrow from the nurse now and start the background checks with pictures. I will have a couple of guards stationed on the floor in case something happens and make sure they have the pictures of the approved staff. Thank you."

"Excellent. No need to thank me. Now, let us go and see how she is doing." Both men left the small room and walked back to Haruhi's room. As they arrived, Ranka opened the door and allowed everyone to enter.

When everyone walked in Haruhi's eyes were opened and she gave everyone a small smile. She looked tired and pale, but her eyes sparkled and she was alive. A bandage covered her right cheek and they imagined there was also a dressing on her side where her other wound was.

"Hi guys. Don't look so sad. I am still here and can still give you hell," she smirked trying to lighten the atmosphere and mood that followed the hosts in. Everyone smiled at her attempt at humor. She was going to be ok.

"So does this mean that…" Hikaru started walking up to her bed and his brother joined him putting an arm around his shoulders and finished with, "We can dress our toy while she is bedridden?" They both gave her a large menacing smile.

"NO!" She said emphatically. Dress up with the twins when she could not argue or fight them off gave her the chills. They laughed at her look of horror.

"Haru-Chan, I brought you cake so that you will feel better. It is strawberry and I had them add extra strawberries. If you want, you can also have Usa-chan until you feel better," Hunny-senpai said as he ran up to the other side of her bed.

"Thank you Hunny-senpai, but why don't you keep Usa-chan instead. I think he would miss you too much," she winked at the blonde. He smiled back at her and nodded.

Tamaki knew better than to start up his daddy/daughter routine with her real father sitting in the room. He looked at her and thought about how close he came to losing her and shivered. "Are you really ok Haruhi? Don't worry about our feelings. How do you really feel?"

"I am ok Tamaki," she gave him a small crooked smile since it hurt her too much to use the right side of her face to smile. "A little sore, but that is to be expected. I am alive and only have minor injuries. I will be back to normal in no time."

"Glad to know you are ok Haruhi, I would hate for all of my efforts of bringing you my hospital to go to waste on you," Kyoya gave her a true smile.

She knew that he was joking. "Yes, Kyoya everyone did a great job and you can let everyone keep their jobs. I think the hospital staff is just as afraid of you as most of the other people you come into contact with." He smirked at her statement knowing that they better be.

She looked at Mori-senpai. He was standing against the wall near the door and looking at her. Although he was a very silent man, the look of guilt on his face tore at her heart. The silence right now was not comfortable, it was deafening. She knew he blamed himself, but it wasn't his fault. He looked as if he was ready for her to blame him like he did himself. She wouldn't give him that though. She needed to talk to him, but she knew that it would have to be alone. This conversation did not need to happen in front of everyone.

Her father noticed where she was looking and asked everyone if they would come get something to drink with him and maybe get something to eat for her. She gave her father a look of gratitude. Everyone readily followed and Mori looked like he was going to walk out the door also, "Takashi, please stay with Haruhi. We will make sure Mitsukuni is ok."

He looked at his cousin who agreed with her father and he nodded his assent. This was it; it was time to face the music because he was unable to protect her. He flinched when she heard her call his name after everyone left and the door was closed.

"Mori-senpai, come here and sit down please," she quietly bade him. He walked over to her bed and sat down in the chair she indicated. "What's wrong?" She asked, but she knew from the look on his face what was wrong.

"I didn't protect you like I said I would. Now you are here. I am so sorry Haruhi. I should have done better."

"There was nothing you could have done. You protected me Mori-senpai. You were able to get me away from Akio. There is nothing for you to be sorry about. You did what you could for me and for that I am thankful and grateful to you. You saved my life," she stated simply staring at the man sitting next to her bed. She was forever grateful for him for more than just what he had done for her with Akio. He had saved her and protected her on more than one occasion. He was always there for her and she had a feeling that he always would be. Everyone else in the club was a little off the wall and could drive her crazy, but he and Kyoya were the constants. He was a protector and a rock that you could depend on, Kyoya was forever manipulating and using the resources at his disposal to make sure everything was taken care of efficiently and effectively. She could always count on them both. She knew that everyone in the club was there for her and she had come to depend on them all, but everyone else was a little on the crazy and irritating side (not that Kyoya wasn't irritating with his money making schemes, he did love profit).

"No Haruhi, you are injured because of me. I should have checked the bathroom before you went in."

"Then he might have been waiting for me in the hall."

"Then I should have gone in with you and made sure everything was ok."

"And you would have freaked out the girls that were in the bathroom when I went in."

"It shouldn't have mattered."

"Takashi, look at me," she said getting his attention. "I am alive and with minor injuries because you were there for me once again. You are forever the gentleman and you would never go into a ladies room. None of us thought that he could be in there waiting for me. We have our own restrooms, so how he knew I would use that one, no one could have predicted. He was lying in wait. If he didn't get me today, he would have found a way to get me another day, regardless of Kyoya had him picked up or not. Stop blaming yourself. No one else is blaming you: not me, not my dad, and not the other hosts. If it hadn't been for you and Daichi, I have no doubt that I would be dead right now and before he killed me, I am sure he would have done other things to me. The torture would have been acute. You prevented all of that from happening."

His face softened when she had used his name. He got butterflies as it rolled off her tongue and he realized how much he liked it. He listened to everything she said and finally nodded. He felt better, but there was still that pang of guilt. That would just take time and he would make sure this never happened to her again. He would protect her and make sure she was safe and no more harm came to her. He grabbed her hand and said a simple thank you to the small woman lying there. She squeezed his hand and yawned. "Sleep," was the simple command he gave. She closed her eyes and was asleep moments later.

He continued to sit there and watch her sleep. He watched her even breaths and rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb. He brought that same hand to his lips and kissed it. "I love you Haruhi," he whispered so softly there was no way she would have heard it even if she had been conscious.

A few minutes later the moment was broken with the return of everyone except Kyoya. He was outside talking with Daichi about the staff. He walked in a couple of minutes later. Everyone quieted down when they realized that she was sleeping again. They did not want to wake her, she needed her rest.

Everyone had visited the gift shop while they were out. They had flowers and balloons for her. Hunny-senpai gave her a purple bunny that said _Get Well Soon_ on its belly that he found in the store. He looked at his cousin as he put in on the bed next to her. He looked like he was handling things better, but he could still see he struggled. There was nothing anyone could say that would make him get over all of his guilt in one day. That was just who Takashi was.

Everyone stayed a while longer before Kyoya said it was probably best that everyone leave. Everyone took one last look at Haruhi and walked out the door. Ranka stopped Kyoya as he was about to follow everyone else, "Can you wait a few minutes Kyoya?"

"Yes, what can I do for you Ranka?" Kyoya asked. He would do anything he could for the man.

"I need to make a call and I don't want to disturb her. Can you sit with her for a few minutes while I do that?" He had completely forgotten to call and check in with the bar. They knew something happened, but he was supposed to call and check in and it had slipped his mind.

Kyoya nodded and sat down in the chair next to the bed as Ranka left the room. Kyoya knew that Haruhi had received another dose of pain meds about half an hour ago, so she was going to be dead to the world for a while. He grabbed her hand and noticed how soft and small it was. "I'm sorry that this happened Haruhi, but I am forever grateful that you are alive and still with me, with us. We would all miss you. We all love you, even me. I love you and I cannot imagine a world without you. So please stop doing stupid things so that we can make sure that you are around until we are all old and in the ground. That would help my nerves a great deal." He kissed her hand and waited for her father to return. He knew in the end that he may not win her, but he would rather have her in the world and happy with someone else, than gone forever.

Ranka returned and thanked the young man for staying a bit longer. He had a feeling that Kyoya needed some alone time with his daughter even if she was out for the count, which is why he had asked him to stay while he made the phone call. They said their good-byes and Kyoya left. Ranka knew that the hosts would descend upon the hospital again in the morning and silently wondered how much peace and quiet his daughter would really get over the next week. He laughed to himself and looked at his daughter, "You are very lucky Haruhi. You have six men that love and adore you. They would do anything for you. You have some very good friends. Kotoko, our daughter is growing up and she is a wonderful woman. She has people that love her and friends that want to take care of her. We could not ask for more for her right now. I just hope she realizes that she will have a decision to make sooner or later. Give her guidance to make the right decision for her. I look at her with those young men and I miss you so much." He watched his daughter sleep a while longer before he closed his eyes and entered dreamland to be with his wife while he slept.

**A/N: I hope you like the story. I am about to leave for vacation next week and am planning on finishing up this story before I leave. For the host that loses Haruhi in this story, I will be writing a new story for him and Haruhi as my next fan fic. So don't worry if your host was not chosen this time. If you still have an opinion, you can let me know who you would like, but this will be the last chapter for that. Thank you everyone. Please read and review. **


	14. Going Home

Disclaimer…. You should know it by now and if you don't, I don't own OHSHC. Enjoy.

Chapter 14 – Going Home

The next morning, Haruhi woke up to murmuring and someone dropping glass in her room. The glass shattered and she woke up with a start. "I didn't do it! You can't charge me!" She yelled to the occupants of the room. Everyone stopped and then started to laugh hysterically. She looked around the room and lay back down with a blush on her face.

"Haruhi, you haven't had a debt with the club in over a year. Guilty conscience?" Kyoya said trying to keep a straight face and failing.

Mori helped her get her bed in a more upright position for her to visit with everyone. When she heard Kyoya she gave him a glare, but could not hold it. She had to admit, her outburst was funny. "Thank you Mori-senpai. As for you, Kyoya, no it is a knee jerk reaction to being in the club," she looked around the room and gave her smirk to all of the hosts, except for Mori. He never seemed to do anything that increased her debt when she had one. Everyone gulped. Her smirk could rival Kyoya's and it made everyone wonder if she was plotting revenge against them. They already knew she was up for it after she helped get the twins.

Mori watched her as she looked at each of the hosts in turn. He also saw the gulp and reaction to her look. They were a bit afraid of her at that moment. He could see the twinkle in her eye and knew none of them had anything to be afraid of, but they needed to keep on their toes. He smiled at her.

"Hey why didn't you smirk at Mori-senpai?" The twins asked together.

"Because that poor man has done nothing but save me time and time again from you hooligans," she laughed at their reaction. Her side was achy, but she felt a lot better and it was manageable as long as she didn't move too much and kept her laughing to a minimum. "Where's my dad?" She asked when she realized that it was only the hosts in the room.

"He went to go get some fresh air and coffee," Kyoya responded to her question.

She nodded and smiled as she watched all of the hosts in the room. Kyoya was typing on his laptop. Mori was standing guard by her bed. Hunny was eating cake next to Kyoya since it was the only table. The twins were giving Tamaki a hard time about the broken vase. Apparently he was the one that dropped the vase and caused the noise in the first place. Even with all of their shenanigans, they were her best friends. She may get pissed off at them a lot and she questioned their antics on a daily basis, but they cared about her and were there for her. She could not ask for better friends. She had been worried about everything after the break-up, but everything was fine. It was more than fine, it was normal. She was happy.

Her father came back into the room a few minutes later and was followed by the doctor. He asked everyone to leave the room so that he could examine his patient. Everyone including Ranka left, but Daichi came in. He was under strict orders that no one was supposed to touch or examine her without someone else present. Since he was her guard, it would be him. He would stand on the other side of the room to give them a bit of privacy though. The doctor was a bit nervous about the guard, but didn't question it. He knew how she got in the hospital in the first place and Kyoya Ootori was taking precautions for his friend.

"Both wounds look good and there isn't any evidence of infection. You will need to take it easy for a few more days before you can get up and move around too much. No school for a minimum of a week. I will see you in my office at that time and we can decide how you are healing and if you need longer," the doctor explained using his best bedside manner.

"A WEEK!?" She yelled. The tallest host and Kyoya came bursting into the room at the sound of her loud voice. Daichi was already at the door expecting the interruption.

The doctor looked at the door and the two additional people in the room, "Yes, didn't anyone tell you? I have given orders that you will be out of school for the next week. The wound on your side bled a lot and you had to have a transfusion. I don't want you opening the stitches or causing yourself more harm. You will need to be in bed for three additional days and you will be out of school for the next week." She was processing the information in her head. His patient did not look happy about the additional convalescence.

Kyoya spoke up before the doctor could add more, "Haruhi, if you are unwilling to stay at home and rest and want to argue with the doctor about how much time before you return to school, I am sure that I could arrange for you to stay in the hospital the entire time. It is your choice."

She glared at her senpai. "Fine, I will go home and rest and not worry about attending school for the next week. Besides, I can always get my school work and do it from the house," she grumbled. Mori, Kyoya, and Daichi all smiled at her acceptance. They knew that she was not happy, but she would rather be at home than in the hospital.

"I will get the paperwork ready and you should be able to leave in the next hour," the doctor said and turned to leave. He bowed to the three men at the door and walked out. The rest of the men waiting outside of the room came back in.

"So is she ok Takashi? What did the doctor do to her?" Hunny-senpai asked ready to do battle.

"She is ok Mitsukuni. Doctor told her about no school," Mori-senpai responded. He looked as his cousin's eyes got bigger and a smiled formed. The doctor was safe from the wrath of Mitsukuni Haninozuka.

"Don't worry Haru-Chan, we will make sure you get your homework and come over to help tutor you in case you don't understand something. Won't we Takashi?" Hunny-senpai looked to his tall cousin and heard his grunt.

She smiled at the two college freshman and nodded. Something told her that she was going to have a weeklong host sleepover at her house while she was home bound. It was times like these that she wished she had a bigger house. She smiled to her friends and knew they would have a house full.

"Actually, Haruhi, we will all make sure that you are able to do your homework and understand everything. Between the four of us, we have all of your subjects covered and if we couldn't help, I am sure we could find you a tutor. No charge this time of course," Kyoya said with a straight face. He was just happy that she was going to be able to go home today. Ranka knew that they would all come by throughout the week, but honestly, he didn't want to leave her while she was bed ridden. He wondered if he would be able to get a pass from school and stay with her for the week. He was sure he could. He and Tamaki already made the decision that Host Club would be cancelled for the time being, so he knew that he didn't have to worry about that.

As Kyoya was thinking about staying with Haruhi for the week, Mori-senpai was having the same thoughts. He wasn't sure if he could though because he still had his cousin. He knew his cousin could look after himself though, so he wondered if it was possible. He was sure Mitsukuni would understand. "Maybe I could offer her a room at my house so that she has more space. I know the other hosts are going to want to come over and it will be hard to keep them from staying if they wanted to," he thought to himself. No, he knew Haruhi wouldn't like that. He looked up and he noticed the twins trying to work on Haruhi's hair and show her the outfits they brought for her. She was swatting their hands away and declining all of the frilly dresses they brought. He laughed to himself; after all of this time they still tried to put her in what they wanted and not what she liked.

Kyoya looked at the scene by the bed and had the same thought, "Idiots, she doesn't like wearing that stuff." If he had to count on Tamaki or Ranka, they would have put her in the same frilly dresses. Thankfully, he thought ahead, "Here Haruhi. I think you will find this is more to your taste and will not put any pressure on your incision." He handed the girl a bag and watched as she opened it up and pulled out a light blue sundress with an empire waste which made the waste line well above her wound and therefore it wouldn't hurt it. It had no lace and no additional frills.

She smiled at him, "Thank you Kyoya, although I would have preferred some sweats or jeans or something. I appreciate this."

"Pants may have hit your stitches and that would have done you no good. Unfortunately for you, a dress was the best option," Kyoya responded with logic.

She nodded. He was right, "Thank you senpai. Hikaru, Kaoru, Tamaki, and dad, this is the dress I am wearing, you so you can take the rest of the dresses and throw them…"

"Haruhi, be nice," Kyoya said quietly to her.

She looked at him shocked and thought to herself, "Damn mind reader probably knew that I was going to tell them to toss them into the closest lake or shove them up their ass." Out loud she continued her statement, "and put them up somewhere to be used for a later time." She plastered on a fake smile for the four men trying to get her to wear the overly feminine items. She looked at Kyoya and Mori and found them trying to hold in their laughter. They knew exactly what she wanted to tell the others and knew her smile was fake. She then looked at Hunny-senpai as he was opening a box with cake in it. He seemed oblivious, but she knew that was not the case at all. He probably knew just as much as Kyoya and Mori.

"Haru-Chan, do you want a strawberry cake while we wait for the release papers?" He looked over to her and asked her sweetly with his big eyes.

"Sure Hunny-senpai, that sounds really good. Thank you," Haruhi said. Honestly she was a bit hungry. She didn't get her breakfast, she wasn't sure what happened to it, and she didn't trust the idiots in the room to get her something without causing more problems. The cake would tie her over until she could get some real food.

After she was done with the cake, Mori carried her over to the bathroom so that she could change. Kyoya grabbed the bag with the dress she decided on and followed the two to the en suite bathroom. Then her fathered remembered that he had another bag for her essentials and gave that to Kyoya before the door closed. They left her alone to get changed.

After about 10 minutes, Haruhi had still not emerged from the bathroom and everyone was worried that she was having problems. Her father knocked on the door and she opened it. Everyone thought she looked so cute in the new dress. She was changed and looked like she was ready to go.

"Are you ok dear? I was just checking to make sure that you were ok," Ranka said as she stepped out.

"Yah dad. It just took me a bit longer to get ready than normal. The stitches in my side felt like they were pulling every time I moved. I am ok though. Just hurting a little bit," she said as she winced a bit when she walked out of the bathroom. Mori-senpai picked her up and carried her back to the bed.

"When was the last dose of pain meds Haruhi?" Kyoya asked looking at the girl.

"Thank you Mori-senpai. Last night Kyoya. I didn't want to keep taking them, but honestly, I feel like I might need something right now," Haruhi told him. Mori was about to hit the call button when he heard this when the nurse came into the room with the release papers and her prescription for pain meds.

"Here you go dear. I just need to you to sign here and here. You are free to go. Here is your prescription for pain meds. I would suggest getting it filled on your way home. Do you need a dose before you leave?" The nurse spoke to her charge.

"Yes, please. My side is hurting from getting dressed," she responded to the nurse.

The nurse looked down at Haruhi and told everyone to leave the room. She wanted to make sure that the stitches were still ok. When she made sure that everything was as it should be, she left the room to get her a dose of pain meds for the trip home.

As the nurse walked out, her father and all of the hosts minus Kyoya walked in. She noticed her missing senpai and asked about him, "He went to fill your pills so that we didn't have to worry about it later. Such a nice boy," Ranka said to his daughter.

The nurse came in with a small cup with the pills and another cup with some water and let Haruhi take the medicine. Once she saw that the girl had taken the pills, she said good-bye to her and everyone else in the room and left.

"Haru-Chan, Takashi and I are going to take you and your dad home. Ok? Tama-Chan will go up to the school and get your school bag and assignments. Kyo-Chan already called the chairman about what was going on so he can pick them up from his dad. Hika-chan and Kao-Chan will get clothes that you can wear for now and bring them over to your house and they better not be too frilly," Hunny was explaining the plan to the girl. The twins gulp they got the threat that Hunny-senpai was conveying. They would make sure the dresses were frill-free. "Kyo-Chan will meet us at your apartment with your medicine. Ok?"

Haruhi just nodded. They had it all planned out and apparently she didn't have a say in the matter. At least it was being taken care of and she didn't really have a problem with the plan. She only hoped the twins would listen. She smiled, they would listen or Hunny-senpai would take care of them. Everyone wondered what the sudden smile was about and when asked, she just said, "Nothing."

Everyone had their assignments and after saying their good-byes to the female host, they took off to accomplish everything they were told to do. Mori-senpai helped Haruhi sit in a wheelchair and her father rolled her out of the hospital and to the waiting car. Mori then helped move her from the chair to the car with ease. She was finally out of the hospital and on her way home. She was happy and even more so when she realized that the assignments that the twins and Tamaki were given would keep them occupied for at least a couple of hours. She was idiot free for a small period of time.

She had started to fall asleep on the way home and by the time they pulled into her apartment complex, she was completely out from the pills she was given. Mori carried her up to the apartment and settled her onto her bed. He covered her up and kissed her forehead. He didn't want to leave her, but knew he had to or answer questions he was not prepared for.

He walked out of her room and found his cousin and her father seated in the living room at the table. He sat down with them and waited for everyone else to show up.

"Where is Daichi?" He asked as he sat down.

"He went to check in with his team and to a perimeter sweep. He will be back shortly Takashi," Hunny said. The tall man nodded at this information and listened to his cousin and Ranka continue their conversation.

Kyoya had hoped that he would be able to fill the prescription and ride to the apartment with Haruhi, but it was not meant to be. He was able to get the pills and take off for the apartment about 10 minutes after the others had left. When he arrived, he didn't knock, he just walked right in. He knew he was expected and if the door had been locked, well he has a key and could have used that to get in. He had been thinking about his feelings and the other hosts on his drive to the apartment and he realized something, the twins seemed to have pulled back a little bit from the young woman. This meant that his competition for Haruhi's hand was Mori-senpai alone. He didn't know if he liked his odds, but he would do what he could to win her and if he lost to Mori-senpai, then he tried and knew she was with a good man.

Haruhi was dreaming about all of the hosts. Tamaki had kissed her hand and told her that he loved her, but he knew that they were not meant to be. Then he pushed her to the other hosts and told her to pick. She looked at him like she was crazy and told him that she didn't want to pick. They were her friends. He asked her if she was sure and then pointed to the hosts again. She looked at the remaining five and Hunny-senpai ran up to her and pushed her towards the other four hosts, "Haru-Chan, listen to Tama-chan. You know you want to pick one. You know you have feelings for them. That is why you knew that you couldn't be with Tama-chan." She just looked at Hunny-senpai holding his Usa-chan and pushing her towards what now appeared to be a stage. She didn't have a choice. She started to walk to the stage and noticed that the twins had gotten up and told her to change. She fought them, but when she looked down she was in a strapless ball gown the color of silver. They started to push her towards the stage also. The two remaining hosts looked up and saw her walking towards them. Mori-senpai was wearing the costume of a knight. Kyoya-senpai was wearing a tuxedo. Both were holding out a rose and their hands to her. "I can't pick!" She yelled and turned around to run, but she didn't get far. Akio was there and he blocked her path. "Pick me then," he sneered. "No!" She yelled and started running another direction. Tamaki was there and caught her. He kept telling her to pick one and she yelled, "I can't pick between them!" She woke up at that moment yelling in the real world as well as her dream.

**A/N: Ok, to make sure that I finish this story before I leave for vacation, I may be posting more than one chapter in a day. So be on the lookout for that. What do you think so far? Please review. Thank you for reading and your votes. **


	15. Promises and Confrontations

Disclaimer…. Don't own OHSHC or the characters, only own my story idea.

Chapter 15 – Promises and Confrontations

The four men in the living room heard Haruhi yell out and got up to run to her room. She was sitting up and breathing hard, looking around the room like she didn't know where she was. Ranka pushed himself to the front of the group and walked in the room, "Haruhi, are you alright?"

She focused her eyes on her father and it seemed to pull her out of the last remnants of sleep. "Dad? Yah, I am ok. Sorry, I was having a weird dream," she said as she lay back down on her bed. The dream was still fresh on her find and when she looked over to the door of her room, she saw the two hosts that played such a prominent role in her dream. She blushed and then turned from them to her father, "Dad, can I get some water?"

"Of course dear, I will be right back." Ranka got up and walked out of the room. He told the others to go sit back down in the living room and drink their tea. They all filed back to the room wondering what she dreamed. Ranka himself wondered what the dream was about, but knew better than to ask her right now. He had a feeling from the blush that it had something to do with the hosts, but he couldn't be sure. He got the water and walked back into Haruhi's room to find her eyes closed and her sleeping again. He placed the water on her nightstand and walked out of the room. He left the door opened in case she called for him or had another dream.

"Is Haru-Chan ok Ranka-Chan?" Hunny-senpai asked when Ranka came back into the living room. He was worried about the young girl.

"Yes, she is Mitsukuni. She just had a dream. She does that sometimes when she is sick or having to take medicine. She will be fine," he said smiling at the host. At least he hoped she would be fine.

The other two hosts in the room were curious about the dream also. They saw her blush and wanted to know what it had to do with picking. Who did she have to pick between? There were questions, but no answers.

Their thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door. Kyoya knew how the remaining hosts were and locked the door to prevent too much of disturbance when they arrived. He got up to answer the door for Ranka and found Tamaki standing there with Haruhi's school bag and a folder in hand. Daichi was walking up the stairs. He nodded to Kyoya and came in the house after Tamaki.

"Kyoya, where is she? Is she ok? Is she calling for me?" Tamaki was getting progressively louder as his rant continued.

Kyoya hit the back of his best friend's head to shut him up. "Shut up you baka! She is sleeping and doesn't need you right now. Just go into the living room and stay quiet," Kyoya ordered the overly dramatic teen. When Tamaki moved off to the living room, he turned to the guard he assigned to Haruhi. "What is it?"

"Sir, Akio's family is requesting the release of their son."

"Hell no! That will not happen! You stay here and keep an eye on things. I have business to discuss with the Tanaka family. Tell the others that I was called away for a couple of hours. I will be back shortly," Kyoya said quietly, almost too quietly. Daichi knew that the Tanaka family was about to get the anger of the Ootori brought down on them. No one in Japan wanted that. Kyoya left and Daichi went to the living room to let everyone know that Kyoya had business that could not be put off. He wondered if his cousin and the young master knew that they were in love with the girl he was protecting.

Everyone thought it was odd that he would be taking care of business when Haruhi just got home, but then again, this was Kyoya. He was used to working all of the time.

Kyoya arrived at the Tanaka mansion. He had his team of personal body guards and police force assigned to him with him. He was not taking chances with this family and when he was done, they would know where they stood.

The door was opened by a maid and he was shown into Shouta Tanaka's study. The patriarch of the Tanaka family was sitting at his desk and his wife was also in the room. They had been expecting someone to arrive with their son; they did not expect the youngest Ootori to come into their house himself.

"Where is my son?" Shouta yelled.

"Prison, where he will stay for a long time. Do you know what your son has been up to lately?" Kyoya asked with a sneer.

"He has done nothing wrong. You have wrongly accused him!" Hina Tanaka said loudly. She did not believe her son would do anything wrong and the Ootori were in the wrong.

"Tachibana, the video if you please," Kyoya said to one of his men. Tachibana walked up to Kyoya and gave him the usb drive that contained the proof of Akio's indiscretions. "On this, you will find out what your son has truly been up to. He hurt a fellow host, who is female, because she declined his advances. The first time she declined, he yelled at her. The second time, he grabbed her and bruised her arm. Then he tried to call his cousin and have a hit put out on her. When that did not work because she was put under the protection of the Ootori family and the Kasanoda syndicate, he hired street thugs to do the job. They broke into her apartment and threatened her. Luckily, she had not been home at the time. Finally when that failed and we had the thugs in custody, which they picked your son out of a line up, he decided to attack her himself. He had a knife and attacked her in the ladies room at school. She now has stitches on her right cheek and a stab wound in her side. If it had not been for the quick reflexes of two people watching out for her, she could easily be dead or hurt worse than what she was."

"You lie. If you are talking about that commoner, he told us all about her. How she tried to get him to sleep with her and how she tried to trap him into marriage. Then when he fell for her tricks, he denied him because she was trying to get a bigger fish. Maybe you should look into her more and realize that she is just trying to play you," Akio's mother once again was doing the talking.

Kyoya turned his death glare on the woman, "If I were you, I would shut up when it comes to Haruhi Fujioka. She is a scholarship student and a friend to the Ootori. She has done nothing but try to keep up her grades and be a member of the host club. She would never, and I repeat never, try to coerce or seduce anyone to further her life. She actually likes her commoner ways and would never do anything to jeopardize her dreams of becoming a lawyer." He turned to Shouta and gave him the jump drive. "Well, put it in the computer. If you don't believe what is on there, you can call your cousin and Ritsu Kasanoda."

Shouta reached out with shaky hands and took the stick from Kyoya and placed it into his computer. He watched the two incidents from the host club. He watched the questioning of the thugs his son had hired. He also saw his son enter the ladies room and watched as they wheeled the young girl out on a gurney to an ambulance. He then watched as his son was brought out by one of Ootori's men and heard Akio yell, "She will die. I will get my revenge. No body denies me. All of the hosts will pay when she is dead!" He turned off the video file, his head hanging.

"Lies! This video must have been tampered with. It is an Ootori trick!" Hina did not want to believe her sweet son would do anything like what they are accusing him of.

"I assure you it is no trick. We did not tamper with anything. If you do not believe me, then you can ask Chairman Suoh, but then again, his son is a host and close friend as well as ex-boyfriend of Miss Fujioka." Kyoya was tired of the woman.

"What do you want?" Shouta asked.

"I want you to not do anything in retaliation towards the girl. In addition, you will give up on trying to get your son back. He is a disgrace to your family. He tried to murder an innocent girl. You have another son as well as a daughter. He will be punished for what he did. You will not pursue revenge against any of the families of the Host Club and you will accept that what has happened is because your son caused this and no one else. If you do all of this, I can assure you that you will keep your businesses, your houses, and nothing else will happen to your family by me or another host family," Kyoya sounded like he was negotiating a business deal, "Remember, the Ootori is a very powerful family and I can make sure your life is a living hell if you want to pursue your son and his supposed innocence further."

Shouta nodded, he knew his son was lost to him and he would have to pay for what he did. He was a fool to go after that girl when she is associated with such a powerful family. He would have to deal with the consequences.

Tachibana walked up to Kyoya and handed him a leather bound book while he whispered in his ear. It looked like a journal. "Mr. Tanaka, here is your son's journal. You will find in his own hand writing his obsession and plans for Haruhi. According to my men, the plans that he actually had for the girl are quite gruesome and graphic. Be happy that those plans were not carried out instead, your son may actually be able to see the light of day again, albeit in another country." Kyoya handed the journal to Shouta and watched him open it to the last few pages and read. He watched the look of horror cross the older man's face.

"This is indeed his handwriting. He is not my son and I am sorry for everything that has happened. Please send our regards to Miss Fujioka and be assured that nothing else will happen," he said disturbed by what he had read. Haruhi Fujioka was innocent and his son was twisted. He could only wonder what had happened to his boy to become such a monster.

"What? You cannot mean that Shouta! It has to be lies!" Hina cried. Her son could not be guilty. Not her son, he was such a sweet boy. She grabbed the journal and started reading. Her eyes grew; her sweet boy was not sweet. She looked up into her husband's face and fainted.

"I am sorry for bringing all of this to you, but you had to know the truth. I will take my leave now." Kyoya bowed and walked out of the room with his men following him.

Shouta Tanaka stooped to pick up his wife from the floor and move her to a couch. They had both had a shock. The boy they thought they knew and portrayed to his parents was nothing like their beliefs. He was twisted and a monster. He was not his son. Akio Tanaka was disowned and now without family.

Kyoya got into his limo and leaned back on the seat. He was shaking. He had never been as mad as he had been when he learned of the journal and what it contained. If Akio had been able to carry out those plans…. Thankfully he hadn't been able to. He had been stopped and he would pay for what he did. Kyoya made a silent promise to himself, the hosts, and Haruhi that Akio Tanaka would pay for what he did and what he had planned to do.

**A/N: Second chapter today. I hope you are enjoying the story. Please review. Now that I have Akio completely out of the way, I can concentrate on Haruhi's choice. LOL.**


	16. Overnight Guests

Chapter 16 – Overnight guests

Kyoya returned to the apartment and let himself in. Daichi was waiting for him by the door. "Is everything ok Master Kyoya?"

Kyoya got a hard look on his face before he looked at the body guard, "Yes, it has been handled and Akio will pay for what he did."

"Kyoya, is that you?" Haruhi called from the living room.

He looked at Daichi when heard her voice and then walked to the front room where it seemed all of the hosts and one father were gathered. "Yes, sorry, I had some business that could not wait, but everything is handled now." He gave her a small smile and noticed everyone was looking at him. "What? Did I come back at a bad time?"

"No, Kyo-chan. The twins were just showing us Haru-Chan's new wardrobe. They seem a bit nervous, but I don't know why." Hunny-senpai said with a cute sweet look on his face, his tone however was very serious.

Kyoya knew that look wasn't the one the twins probably received based on that tone of voice and he knew why the twins were nervous. He knew that Hunny-senpai had given the two Hitachiin "guidelines" for the clothes and if anything was wrong with them, the twins would feel the wrath of Hunny. He looked from his cute senpai to his cousin. Mori-senpai was giving him a look and with a slight nod of his head, he got up and Kyoya followed him.

"Is it handled?" Mori asked simply. He knew why Kyoya left since he had heard Akio's name spoken before Kyoya left.

"Yes, he will pay for what he has done and Haruhi is safe. I will keep Daichi with her for the time being to make sure everything has passed, but his family is not going to give us problems." Kyoya said simply.

The tall man nodded and walked into the kitchen to make some more tea as Kyoya walked back to the living room. Mori was breathing a sigh of relief. He needed a moment alone. He knew Akio was locked away, but that did not mean that the danger was behind them. He had been worried for Haruhi and it was twisting him up on the inside. Now that he knew she was safe, he could breathe again. He would be ok leaving her alone now if he needed to, he didn't want to, but he knew it would be ok. Now that Akio's family had let go, he could relax a little bit more. He thought about almost losing her and tears came to his eyes. He quickly wiped them away when he realized the water was boiling and finished making the tea. He poured himself a cup of the tea and one for Kyoya and walked back into the living room. If anyone noticed his eyes looked a little moist or red, no one said anything.

The twins continued to show the group the new clothes and everything was met with approval by Haruhi and then when she gave her approval, Hunny-senpai. Hunny would make sure that she had the clothes she wanted and not what the twins, Tamaki, or her father wanted. When both of them gave their approval, the twins sagged against each other and let out a long slow breath. "Thank God!" They said together. Everyone laughed at their dramatic show.

The twins and Tamaki soon left the apartment with the promise to return tomorrow after school. They had had enough of the looks from Kyoya and Mori-senpai going back and forth. Even though they had bowed out, they still loved the girl. The twins also wanted to get away from Hunny-senpai. They were worried that he was going to do something to them if they did one thing he didn't agree with. Tomorrow would be a better day for a visit and hopefully Hunny-senpai would not be there, they hoped.

After the three more dramatic hosts left, Ranka asked the other three if they would stay for dinner. He was going to order out since he could not cook like Haruhi could. They agreed, but they insisted on paying for dinner. The orders were placed and they just had to wait.

Haruhi remembered her dream vividly and found herself on edge around the two dark haired teens. She wanted to pretend that she didn't understand the dream, but she did all too well. "Damn pain meds," she muttered to herself.

"What was that dear?" Her father asked.

"Umm nothing dad. I was just talking to myself," she said. She did not want to have to explain why she said what she did to anyone right now, especially not in front of Mori-senpai and Kyoya-senpai. Everyone's attention was on her and she was squirming in her seat. She didn't like all of the attention she was getting, "So um, Kyoya-senpai, how much longer will Daichi be guarding me? Akio is in your prison, so the threat is over with. Right?"

"I want him to watch you for a couple more weeks to make sure that nothing else is going to happen. We can't be too careful. Beside he will help deter the three idiots from causing you too many problems for the next week."

"True, I hadn't thought of that one. Thanks!" She had the feeling that her personal body guard would be valuable to her over the course of the next week. The twins and Tamaki were sometimes over enthusiastic and may not always think before they acted. The last thing she wanted was her stitches to pop. She shivered when she thought about the damage those three could potentially do when no one was around to watch them.

"Are you cold?" Mori-senpai was asked when he saw the shiver.

"Huh? No senpai, thank you though. That was me thinking about the havoc those three could cause. It is enough to make anyone a little scared," she replied laughing. Everyone stopped and thought about it for a second and they all started to laugh. It was scary. Next time they had an enemy, they just needed to release those three and the enemy would surely surrender quickly.

Daichi came into the room amid the laughing and smiled. He didn't know what they were laughing about, but after the last few days, they needed a good laugh. He looked at his cousin and was surprised to see him laughing also. He didn't think he would ever see that, but he had learned that this girl was special and she influenced the others around her for the better. He set the food on the table and everyone started to calm down.

Hunny looked up and saw Daichi place the food on the table smiling. He knew that the guard was happy that they could have a good laugh. He also saw him look over at Takashi and his smile grew. Yes, it was a rare sight to see, but around Haruhi, the unexpected happened. Hunny grabbed the food and started passing everyone's order to them.

Daichi took his food and was about to go back to his post at the door when Haruhi stopped him, "I don't think we are going to have a break in right now. Sit down and eat your food with us." He looked at her and looked at his employer, she noticed that. "Kyoya tell him to sit down and eat with us."

"You heard her, sit down. She is right, I think we are safe from even those three walking back in," Kyoya said. His remarks started another round of laughter from the group.

Daichi sat down with the group and ate his food. He quietly observed everyone in the group. He saw the small glances Kyoya and Takashi gave to the woman. He saw that she would look at those two men more than anyone else in the room, and he observed that Mitsukuni was doing the same thing he was. When he looked at the blonde, he got a wink and a smile back. He knew he was up to something, but he wasn't sure what it was. As long as Haruhi was safe, he supposed it was going to be alright. He was sure the small man was going to try to get his tall cousin and the small woman together somehow. The only problem was that Kyoya had feelings too.

During dinner, Haruhi started to ask Daichi questions. She felt that if he was going to be watching out for her, she wanted to get to know him a little more. He started telling her about growing up and his training, then he started to tell stories of her two senpais from when they were children. She noticed that Mori-senpai was a little red from blushing and Hunny-senpai was laughing at the memories. She laughed at the stories and thanked the guard for sharing them. She saw him nod and then stand, he had rounds to make and then would be back.

"What about you Kyoya? Do you have funny stories from your childhood?" Haruhi asked the serious host.

"No, I do not. I was raised that play was not needed and that if you were an Ootori, you had to work to succeed," he responded.

"I'm sorry Kyoya. That doesn't sound like a fun childhood." She was sad for him and felt sorry that he didn't have more fun.

"On the contrary, I learned a lot and hanging around the idiot king has more than made up for my childhood," he smirked to her. He didn't want her pity, but knew that he did not have an upbringing like most kids.

"I think if we call your sister, we could get some stories from her," Haruhi said thoughtfully.

"NO! No calling my sister and getting anything from her. She doesn't know any funny stories. I was a very boring child."

This got everyone's attention. "What are you afraid of Kyoya-senpai?" Haruhi asked innocently. She wanted to call his sister that moment, but knew in order to do that, she would have to steal his phone or call Tamaki. Both were dangerous missions.

"Nothing, there is nothing to tell," he said quickly. He knew he was in for it now. He couldn't recall any stories, but he knew his sister had some stories for his friends if they were to ask. She had tried to tell him some stories of him growing up one time, but he blocked her out. He could not recall what the stories were and was very afraid of what dirt she had on him.

The look of terror that crossed the normally composed senior's face was classic. It caused another round of laughing from everyone in the room.

"Don't worry Kyo-Chan, I will make sure that they don't call your sister," Hunny-senpai said to the fearful teen.

"Thank you senpai, but I really don't think there are stories and besides, she doesn't have Fuyumi's phone number," he responded and started laughing again.

"Ok, I will make a note to find that phone number," she said winking at Kyoya. She watched him pale and then regain his composure again. She never knew she could have so much fun teasing him.

She yawned and realized that she was getting tired and her side was starting to hurt her again. She blamed all of the laughing, "Well I am going to take some medicine and go to bed. If you three are going to stay, my dad can get everything for you. Good night."

She tried to stand up slowly and almost tipped over. Mori caught her before she could fall. He picked her up and carried her to her room. On the way, he grabbed her pills so that she could take one. He gently laid her down on the bed and gave her one of her pain pills. She took it and settled back down in order to sleep, "Thank you Mori-senpai for everything."

He nodded and sat there for a moment watching her as she slowly closed her eyes. He then got up and walked back to the living room. He didn't know about his cousin or Kyoya, but he made the decision that he was going to stay the night to make sure she was ok. When he got to the living room, there was a pile of blankets and pillows along with a couple of rolled futons. He looked to his cousin and received a big smile, "We are having a sleep over Takashi and Kyo-Chan said he was going to stay too." Mori nodded and smiled at the excitement in Mitsukuni's voice.

He and Kyoya moved the table out of the living room and placed it against one of the walls in the kitchen. Then they got the futons ready. His cousin was small enough to sleep on the couch that was in the living room. Ranka looked exhausted himself, so he told the teens that he was going to bed himself and left the three in the living room.

"I would suggest that we not tell the others that we stayed the night here. They may try to stay the night going forward and I don't know how well that would go with Ranka and Haruhi. You know he is still not fond of Tamaki," Kyoya said simply after they got everything arranged for sleeping. Both of his senpais nodded in agreement. They knew the other three would be jealous and try to pull something if they knew any of the other hosts stayed the night. They all made a pact to keep it to themselves.

Kyoya had already spoken to the chairman and got permission to miss school until Haruhi was allowed back next week. He could easily make up the work for the days missed since was well ahead in all of his classes, it was just a matter of doing any additional assignments that were not on the syllabus. The chairman was not going to be so good to his son or the twins. He knew how much of a hassle those three could be and he had a feeling that the last thing a bedridden girl with a stab wound needed was three hyper jokers trying to pull her every which way. The best thing he could do for her was to make sure those three stayed in school for the week.

Hunny and Mori had missed classes on Monday and Tuesday already, so they were going to go to classes in the morning, but since it was their short day, they should make it back to Haruhi's apartment before the other three hosts arrived from school. They knew they could miss, but they didn't want to skip too many classes and wanted to explain the situation to their professors. It would take extra time to explain it to all of their professors since they had different teachers tomorrow than they did on Tuesday/Thursday. With any luck though, they would be able to miss school for the rest of the week.

Haruhi would not be able to return to school at a minimum of next Tuesday, and if Kyoya, Hunny-senpai, and Mori-senpai could arrange it, she would not be alone and her father could go back to work without worrying about his daughter. Yes, she had guards looking out for her, but they were not her friends and they would not keep her company too much. The three of them could do that for her and were more than happy to do it.

The next morning, Hunny and Mori both got up and quickly exited the living room. They knew how Kyoya could be when woken up early and they did not want to face that dreaded demon this morning. True Hunny could be just as bad, but he was a lot easier to get up and get moving. Mori knew how to wake up his short cousin without dying; he wasn't so sure about Kyoya. They got ready for school and left the apartment to get in the limo to head to school, stopping for breakfast on the way.

As they were driving towards the university Hunny decided that he needed to give his cousin a sort of pep talk, "Takashi, what are you going to do about Haruhi?"

"What do you mean Mitsukuni? I am going to protect her and be there for her when she needs me, just like you are." He knew he was skirting the issue, but he wasn't ready to talk about his feelings just yet. He knew what they were, but he didn't think she was ready to hear them. Between ending the relationship with Tamaki and everything that had happened with Akio, the last thing she needed was for him to spill his guts to her. He knew it just wasn't the time.

"You know that is not what I mean Takashi. You love her and you need to tell her. You may lose her if you don't."

"No Mitsukuni, it is not the time for confessions right now. She has been through enough and needs time. She is not ready." His voice said that the discussion was over and Mitsukuni nodded his acceptance of that.

Mitsukuni did not want to rush his cousin to confess to the girl, but he had observed both he and Kyoya last night. Both of them were in love with Haruhi and it looked as if Haruhi may have feelings for both of the hosts. He was afraid that if Takashi did not make a move, Kyoya would and his cousin would lose her to another man yet again. He knew it hurt the tall man when she chose Tamaki and how relieved he was when they announced the end of the relationship. He had felt bad for feeling the way he did about a relationship ending and told Mitsukuni that, but his cousin had comforted him and told him it was ok. It gave him a chance now to be with the girl he loved. The short man was afraid he was going to lose his chance again, but he couldn't force Takashi to do anything he didn't want to do.

The two college hosts made it to school and attended classes. They were able to talk to all of their professors and were excused from classes until next week Wednesday. They weren't expecting that, but they were grateful for it. They got all of their homework assignments and figured they could work on them while Haruhi worked on her assignments at the apartment. This allowed them some extra time with her and Hunny was hoping that it would allow his cousin to make the first move. He knew Kyoya would be there also, so it was a matter of time and who could make the initial move.

Hunny-senpai and Mori-senpai arrived back at Haruhi's apartment just before 2:30pm. The twins and Tamaki would be finishing up their school day shortly and then pandemonium would arrive at the apartment. They needed to be sure that everything as put away and did not look like the three hosts were staying there. They walked in the door and into the living room. Everything looked normal and you could not tell that they had extra overnight guests.

"Kyo-Chan, did you put everything back yourself?" Hunny asked Kyoya.

"Ranka helped before he left for work. We weren't 100% sure when you would be back and we didn't want the others to make it back before you and find the futons and our sleeping stuff. You can throw your bags into Haruhi's room for now to hide them from prying eyes, but be quiet because she is taking a nap. She wanted to be rested before she had to deal with 'the three tornados' she said," Kyoya responded. Both teens nodded and put their bags in the sleeping girl's bedroom very quietly. They knew that she could be a demon also, but that is usually when she was pushed too far and not when you woke her up, they still did not want to chance it.

"Were you able to talk to your professors today?" Kyoya asked when the two older men walked back into the living room and sat down.

Mori-senpai nodded and his cousin spoke, "Yah Kyo-chan. They completely understood and all of them gave us the next week off. We don't have to report to class again until next Wednesday."

"Good that will insure that one of us is always here with her while she is home. I don't trust the other three to take it easy with her, so I would prefer if someone was here with her." Hunny and Mori nodded at Kyoya's statement. The Hikaru, Kaoru, and Tamaki tended to act first and think later. This could be damaging to someone with an injury. They knew that they cared for the girl, but they tended to be a little over enthusiastic in their expressions of caring.

Kyoya was working on his laptop and Hunny decided to start reading a book he was assigned in literature. Before Mori started his school work, he decided to make some tea for everyone. He figured that Haruhi may want some when she got up and the others that were surely on their way may want some when they got there. He and Hunny had picked up some cake for everyone and they would probably order out for dinner later on.

Just as the water came to a boil, there was a knock at the door. Mori was the closest, so he answered it. On the other side of the door were Tamaki and the twins. "Daughter, did you miss me?" Tamaki asked in a loud voice making his way through the apartment.

"Shhh," Mori-senpai said to the obnoxious teen and thought, "At least the twins know how to enter quietly."

"Tamaki, Haruhi is taking a nap. Shut up!" Kyoya said quietly.

Tamaki instantly started to pout and ended up in the closet to grow mushrooms. He was mumbling something about everyone being mean to him and he was a bad father to his daughter. Everyone decided to ignore him.

Mori finished making the tea and pouring it into cups when he heard movement behind him. He looked and saw Haruhi walking out of her room and shutting the door so that no one saw the extra luggage in there. She walked up to her senpai holding her side and Mori raised an eye brow at her. "It's nothing Mori-senpai. I just accidentally turned in my sleep and lay on my side. It is a little sore now."

"Do you need your pills?" He asked concerned.

"Not yet. If it gets worse, I will take one, but I think I am ok. I just need to go sit down. I would like some tea though," she said smiling at the steaming cups.

"Go lay down on the couch. I will bring you some. Tamaki and the twins just got here. Just a second," Mori called for his cousin. When Hunny saw Haruhi standing there, he guided her into the living room. They didn't want anyone to touch, pull, glop, or squeeze her right now.

When she made her way into the living room behind Hunny-senpai, the twins made to attack her, but Hunny blocked them, "No! She is tender and hurting. You can say hello, but you are not to pull her or hurt her in any way. So no touching right now until she says it is ok and how you are allowed."

The twins backed up and moved away from the couch. Kyoya had moved to the table and off of the couch so that she could lie down. He gave her a pillow to put behind her head and covered her up with a blanket. Once she was settled and as comfortable as she could get, she looked at the twins and gave them a smile, "How was school? Where's Tamaki?" She took the offered cup of tea from Mori and waited for the twins to answer. She had looked around but didn't see the self-proclaimed king of the host club. She wondered where he was at.

They were about to answer when everyone heard, "Daughter, I am here. Did you miss me?" Tamaki came rushing out of the closet and almost made it to the couch when Mori grabbed his collar preventing him from advancing further.

"Tama-Chan, you apparently didn't hear the rules when I said them. No touching unless she gives permission and tells you how you can touch her," Hunny said glaring at Tamaki.

"But I am her father. Surely she wants me to hold her. Besides Hunny-senpai, I am her friend and ex-boyfriend. I can hold her any time I want to."

"No you can't. Ex means ex and that means you no longer have the privileges befitting a boyfriend. No more touching, hugging, kissing, or anything else unless she says so Tamaki. Besides right now, no one is touching her unless she says because of her wound. If you don't like the rules, you can leave," Kyoya stated pushing his glasses up his nose.

"Bu, but I am her daddy!"

"No you're not senpai! I have a father and it isn't you. They are right, those are the rules and if you can't live with them then you can leave Tamaki," Haruhi said plainly.

"Mommy, Haruhi doesn't love me anymore," Tamaki whined and went back to the closet to pout. Everyone laughed at him and then decided to pretend he wasn't there.

Mori passed around the tea he had made while the twins talked about their day. They went to the chairman to get permission to be off from school so that they could keep Haruhi company during the week, but they were denied. They said that Tamaki had tried also, but he was also denied. They didn't understand why Kyoya was allowed and they weren't, but they figured that his father had something to do with it. Kyoya smirked; it hadn't been his father, but himself that had asked.

Hunny ran to the kitchen and grabbed the cake that they had picked up on the way to the apartment and passed around the box. Haruhi got the first pick and after that the box was passed to the other hosts. They sat around the living room talking, eating, and then decided to watch a movie together. It was a good afternoon.

After the movie ended, everyone decided that it was time to order dinner. Tamaki and the twins told Haruhi to get dressed and they would take her out. Hunny, Mori, and Kyoya shook their heads no. "Haruhi cannot go out to dinner you idiots. She will stay here and we will order out," Kyoya said simply. He often wondered if those three had brains that were functioning all of the time.

They decided on dinner and ordered the takeout. Tamaki volunteered to pick it up as a personal service to his daughter. He then begged and pleaded for someone to go with him because he didn't want to go alone. Kyoya finally gave in and said he would go with him to pick up dinner. When they returned, Haruhi was nowhere to be found and Kyoya looked to Hunny and Mori. "She is lying down again. Hikaru accidentally fell on her and she had to take one of her pills. Her stiches are ok though," Mori answered. The problem twin was currently sitting in the corner looking ashamed.

Tamaki placed the food down on the table and Kyoya went to check on Haruhi in her room. "Haruhi are you alright?"

"Yah, Kyoya I am fine. I just had to get away from them. I was already a little sore, but when he fell on me, it hurt. He was acting the fool and Hunny-senpai told him to stop and that is when he tripped. I will be fine. The pills have started to kick in and they are helping."

He nodded at her and saw a spot of blood on her side. "Haruhi let me look at your side. You are bleeding." She looked down and realized that she was, but she wasn't about to just lift her dress in front of Kyoya. He knew what her problem was, "I am going to turn around. Get under the covers and cover your bottom half. Lift your dress to just over the incision."

True to his word, he turned around and Haruhi followed his instructions, "Ok Kyoya."

He turned back around and lifted the bandage from her side. It didn't look like the stiches had come undone, but it had bled a little. "It looks like it already stopped, but I am going to clean this and then put a new bandage on for you. Ok?" When she nodded, he got the supplies he needed to patch her back up and came back into the room. He quickly cleaned the wound and put ointment on it before taping another bandage on her side. He did the same for the stitches on her face. "Now that that is done, do you want to eat some dinner or do you want to lay here? I can bring your dinner in here if you want."

"I can go in there and eat dinner with everyone if you can promise that they won't fall on me again and you keep them away from me. Then they have to go after we eat," she said simply.

He laughed at her and agreed. Before she could get up though, he picked her up to carry her into the living room and set her on the couch. Tamaki tried to take her from him, but one glare from Kyoya and he backed off. "Rules Tamaki, if you cannot follow them, you cannot come over."

"But you are carrying her," Tamaki argued.

"I am carrying her because she wanted to come in here and eat dinner with everyone. Her side hurts and she is a little wobbly on her feet right now," Kyoya said as his excuse. He told himself that she could have probably walked, but this was better right now because she was in pain and he didn't want to have to bandage her side again. Besides, if she walked, there was a greater chance of her falling or one of the others trying to get to her as she made her way to her spot on the couch. Yes, this was much safer.

Everyone carried on friendly conversation throughout dinner and when it was over with, Haruhi went back to bed while Tamaki, Kaoru, and Hikaru were kicked out for the night. "Wait a minute! Why do you get to stay and we have to leave?" Hikaru asked the other three men.

"Easy, Ranka is at work and someone has to stay here with her. I don't have school tomorrow and you three do. They are staying to keep me company," Kyoya lied smoothly. The door was shut and locked after the three made their exit. Kyoya went to check on Haruhi and she was already sleeping. He leaned down and kissed her bandaged cheek. "I will protect you from them Haruhi," he whispered softly and then went to the living room with Hunny and Mori.

The three of them decided to get the living room ready for sleeping and then popped in another movie to watch before they turned in for the night. After the movie was over with though, Kyoya decided to work on his laptop while the two oldest hosts went to sleep. He kept thinking about Haruhi. He knew his feelings for the girl, but he wasn't sure if she was ready for them. He had to make a move sooner or later though or he may lose his chance again. He decided to wait a little bit longer to give her time to deal with her latest ordeal before he confessed. The next week was going to be a long one for him. She would be so close and yet he didn't have her.

**A/N: This is my longest chapter yet. The story will be coming to a close soon and you will find out who the couple is. If you are disappointed, don't worry, I already promised that if your chosen couple loses, I will make them the featured couple in my next story. Happy reading and please review. Sorry for the fast updating, I am just trying to finish the story before I leave since I will not be uploading on vacation.**


	17. Chances

Disclaimer... I do not own OHSHC or its characters.

Chapter 17 – Chances

The next two days passed very much the same way Wednesday had. Tamaki and the twins would show up after school and after dinner, they were kicked out of the apartment. They tried to argue Friday night that there was no school on Saturday, but it didn't work and they were told to go home by Ranka.

Saturday morning, Haruhi woke up with her side hurting and it was hard to move. It was still early since looking out the window the sky was still dark. When she looked at the clock, it was only 4:51am. She wasn't sure if her dad was home or not, but when she tried to stand, she realized that it hurt too much. She called for her friends in the living room and Mori came running into her small bedroom, "What's wrong?"

She looked up at the figure in the door and shook her head, "I don't know. My side hurts a lot and I am having a hard time standing."

Mori immediately turned on the light and went to the bed. She was pale and sweating. This was not a good sign. He felt her forehead and she was running a fever. He lifted the shirt on her pajamas (she had decided to wear regular pajamas instead of a night gown or dress to bed) and lifted the bandage. Her wound looked red and it looked like one of the stitches had popped. This was definitely not good. "Stay right here. We need to take you to the hospital. I need to go wake the others. Your dad isn't home yet, so we will call him."

She nodded and watched him leave. She knew that it didn't look good when Mori-senpai had gotten the look on his face that he did. He normally didn't show that much emotion, but when he looked at her wound, he blanched.

Mori walked into the living room and tried to wake up his cousin and Kyoya. It was not a quick process and both of them had dark aura's surrounding them when they started to rouse. "Hurry up, it's Haruhi! I think her wound is infected and one of the stitches looks like it broke. We need to take her to the hospital!"

That woke the two up the rest of the way and the darkness receded. They jumped up and got changed so that they could take Haruhi to the hospital.

While the other two finished getting dressed, Mori walked into Haruhi's room and gently wrapped Haruhi in a blanket. He then picked her up and started walking towards the door. Hunny was there to open the door and Kyoya walked out afterwards and locked the door. They went to the waiting car and drove off to the closest Ootori hospital. All three were worried. Kyoya called the bar and told Ranka what was happening. He sent a car to pick up the father. Until they knew what was happening, they decided to hold off on calling the other three. They would be loud and obnoxious and that is not what was needed right now.

The limo sped through the streets and arrived at the hospital shortly after it left the apartment. Hunny and Kyoya got out of the car first and Mori followed carrying Haruhi in her blankets.

When they walked into the emergency room, the nurse tried to get them to fill out paper work before she was seen. Kyoya decided to handle the staff himself since it was one of his hospitals, "We will fill out the paperwork after you get a doctor to see her."

The nurse interrupted before he could continue, "I am sorry, but our policy is…"

Kyoya did not like to be interrupted and he did not like to be told what to do by someone that was in his employ, "No, I don't think you realize who you are talking to. I am Kyoya Ootori and you will get a doctor in here right now to see her and you will not argue with me any longer if you want to keep your job. Now tell me which room is available so that we can lay her down while you call the doctor."

The nurse finally took a good look at the man that was talking down to her and realized her mistake. She was going to be in trouble and hoped that she could rectify the situation before she was fired, "Room 3 is empty. I will call the doctor to meet you there."

The three young men walked into the ER area and into room 3. When they got into the room, the doctor was there waiting for them, "Mr. Ootori, I apologize for what happened at the front desk. Please lay the young woman on the bed and let me examine her." He watched a tall man lay his bundle down gently on the bed and when she was unwrapped, the doctor saw a pale girl that was shivering. He looked up at the men and was about to tell them to wait outside, but at the look he received from the Ootori, he thought better of it. He worked quickly and looked at both of her wounds while the nurse in the room took her vitals. She was running a fever of 101.7 and her blood pressure was low. The wound on her side was indeed infected. They would need to remove the stitches and clean the wound. They would also need to start IV antibiotics stat. He knew if he messed this up, he would not be practicing medicine in Japan ever again.

He pulled the men out of the room to talk to them while the nurse ordered the requested medicine and drew some blood. "I am ordering IV antibiotics for her. Her stab wound is infected. We will be removing the stitches and cleaning her side. I will not lie that it will probably hurt a lot, so I am suggesting that we give her a mild sedative. She will have to be admitted so that she can be monitored. I am going to start the antibiotics down here and get a surgeon to prep the OR to clean her wound. Since it is already infected, I want to be sure that they clean it well and the OR staff will have a better chance of doing that and if they need to go into the wound, it is better they do that." The doctor turned and went back into the room. Ranka had arrived at the beginning of the explanation and went into the room with the doctor. Everyone was worried. Hunny and Mori stayed outside with Kyoya.

Kyoya immediately pulled out his phone and called the best surgeon that worked for the Ootori hospitals. He also called the plastic surgeon again and soon enough both were arriving in order to care for Haruhi. She was taken to the OR so that they could clean the wound and if possible stitch her back up, but they knew depending on how bad infection was when they opened it up, would depend on if they could stitch it closed right now.

The doctor came out after they got the wound cleaned and explained that they were not able to stitch it closed at this time. They would need to wait for the infection to clear and the antibiotics to get into her system. She was a fighter though and she would be alright once she got over the infection. He wanted to keep her in the hospital a couple of days at least to make sure everything was clearing and to stitch up the wound once it was safe. He did not want to send her home was a gaping hole in her side. The four men breathed a sigh of relief.

Once she was placed in a room, Kyoya decided it was time to call Tamaki, Hikaru, and Kaoru. He hoped that they had not been to the apartment yet, but with those three you could never tell. "Kyoya, are you calling because my daughter is calling for me? Does she need me by her side? It is so early, but I will come to her in her hour of need," Tamaki said with flamboyance.

Kyoya looked at his watch, it was just after 9a. How the man did not sound like he was woken up when he was, Kyoya would never know or understand, "Tamaki, I need you to listen very carefully and stay calm. Haruhi's side wound got infected and she is back in the hospital. She has been admitted so that they can monitor her and give her the medicine she needs to get better." Kyoya cringed at the loud yelling coming through the phone. Tamaki has resorted to speaking French and was babbling so much, Kyoya could not understand him, "Tamaki calm down. She is fine, but she will be in the hospital for a day or two." He told Tamaki which hospital they were in and the room number. He then hung up the phone. He knew the blonde would show himself quickly.

The next call would be to the twins. He dialed the first number he came to for them, which was Hikaru's number, and waited for them to answer. When he got voicemail, he hung up and called Kaoru. He again got voice mail and left them the hospital information on that. They would get the message after they woke up.

He walked back into the room and looked at the bed. Haruhi was sleeping still and still looked pale, but she was alive and that is what mattered. Ranka was sitting next to the bed in a chair and the other two were standing by the window close to the bed. The looks on everyone's faces showed their worry.

"Tamaki is on his way here and I had to leave a voice mail for the twins," Kyoya told the room in general. He was not looking forward to any of the three being there, but he couldn't keep the information from them. He heard Ranka grumble at the mention of Tamaki and had to laugh internally at the man's dislike of the blonde man. He would have thought that after Tamaki dated his daughter for over a year, he would get used to him, but Ranka still couldn't stand the man.

Tamaki arrived about an hour later and walked into the room very loud and filled with drama. Kyoya could understand why Ranka still had issues with him, "Tamaki you moron, shut up! She is still sleeping and needs rest. If you are going to be loud, I will kick you out and make sure you are not allowed in."

Tamaki stopped and looked at his best friend, "You would do that to me?"

"Yes, in a heartbeat. So shut up and be good." Kyoya did not have a problem banning the exuberant man from the room if it meant that Haruhi would be able to rest and have quiet. He watched his best friend squeak and then run to a corner to sulk and pout. He shook his head, at least he was being quiet about his sulking this time, "Tamaki no mushrooms in the hospital or I will ban you for that also." The mushroom were stomped out and cleaned up and the sulking resumed sans fungi.

The twins arrived a couple of hours after Tamaki and although they were quiet, they were still obnoxious and a bit on the loud side. Kyoya gave them the same lecture that he gave Tamaki and watched them sit down in two chairs and be quiet.

Haruhi did not wake up for a few more hours and when she did the first face she saw was Kyoya. She smiled at her friend and then looked to her other side where her dad as sitting. She squeezed his hand and then looked around the room. All of the hosts were there and looking worried. She wanted to ease their fears, but wasn't sure how. This morning had scared her also. "Hey guys!" She croaked out. Her throat was dry.

The three loudest teens turned to the bed and started talking at once. Mori, Hunny, and Kyoya saw her eyes grow and look as if she was trying to shrink into the bed when Tamaki and the twins advanced. Mori and Hunny decided to stop them in their tracks and would not let them get too close to the bed. They were the muscle and Kyoya was the voice, "You three need to stay away and not get to close. We cannot have any of you accidentally hurting her because they were not able to stitch the wound. And furthermore, be quiet. I think I already told you that. She needs peace."

The three teens looked like they were five and had been scolded by their nanny. They stayed where they were and asked how she was feeling.

"I am here. I think I feel a little better than I did this morning though. Thankfully Mori-senpai heard me and was able to wake up Kyoya and Hunny-senpai to bring me here. I will be ok guys. Don't worry." She offered them a smile and they nodded their heads.

Daichi stuck his head in the room and called for Kyoya. His employer walked out of the room to hear what the body guard had to say, "Sir, I followed the same protocols that we had the last time she was in the hospital. I wanted you to be aware that I have denied one of the nurse's accesses to the room due to her connections with the Tanaka's and more importantly her relationship with the cousin."

"Very good, make sure the team has the picture and is aware of who is allowed and not allowed into the room. Although the family said they would not retaliate, it is good to err on the side of caution." Kyoya walked back into the room and Daichi left to brief his team.

Soon enough visiting hours were over and Kyoya had a cot brought in for Ranka. While he over saw everything and was making sure that Ranka and Haruhi would have a peaceful night, the other hosts left to go home. They would be back in the morning to harass Haruhi some more. She said good bye to everyone and gave them all a kiss on the cheek.

Before Kyoya left, he asked Ranka if he could have a moment alone with his daughter. Ranka nodded and left the room. Kyoya felt that the events of this morning were a sign that he shouldn't waste his time. He could have lost her again and she would not know how he felt about her. He had to tell her and if she denied him, then he would understand, but he had to tell her. "Haruhi, how are you feeling?"

"I am ok Kyoya. A little sore but I will heal. You should know that, you did make sure I had the best staff to tend to me." She was trying to joke with him. He seemed so serious and sad.

"I need to tell you something. Please listen and don't interrupt." When he saw her nod, he continued, "I have always admired your bluntness and your ability to deal with each of the hosts individually. Because of you, we have all grown and became better men. You taught us what it meant to really be a family, to be friends. You taught me that I am my own man and I don't need to live in anyone's shadow. You also taught me how to open myself up to feelings and that it was ok to care about people. I am forever grateful to you for that. You are a wonderful woman. When you ended up with Tamaki, a few things became clear and I regretted not taking a chance back then, but he is my best friend and he deserved happiness. Now that you are not with him, I find my feelings back in the forefront and the events over the past week made me realize that we don't have all of the time in the world. I need to tell you that I love you. I have for a long time and find myself enchanted by you more and more every day. You are one of my best friends, but you mean so much more to me than that. I want to be with you and I want to take care of you. Will you be mine?"

"Kyoya I don't know what to say. You are one of my best friends and I will admit that I have felt things for you beyond friendship, but I don't know. I need to think. Can you give me time?" She didn't want to hurt him and part of her wanted to be with him, but what about Mori?

He nodded to the girl in the bed and bent down to kiss her forehead, "I will give you all of the time in the world and if you cannot return my feelings, I will understand." He walked out of the room with one final look towards her and left the hospital to go home.

Haruhi had a lot of thinking to do and she wasn't sure what her decision was going to be. She started to look at it from every angle. She thought about her feelings for Kyoya and for Mori. She thought about the other hosts and realized that the feelings there were only platonic. She knew Mori cared about her as a friend and protected her, but did he feel anything else for her? She didn't know, but the more she thought about it, the more she was convinced that he didn't. He was there as her protector and he thought he had failed, so he was there to make it up to her. That night she dreamed and in the morning, she made her decision.

Kyoya was the first to arrive at the hospital. When he entered the hospital room, he noticed that Ranka was still sleeping. Haruhi opened her eyes as soon as Kyoya walked in. Then she looked at the clock and read 5:10am, "A little early for you isn't Kyoya?"

"I couldn't sleep very well, so I am up here to check on you and make sure everything was ok." He was suddenly nervous talking to her.

She waived him closer to the bed. She didn't want to wake up her father. "I have thought a lot about what you said last night Kyoya and have made a decision," she paused looking at him and noticed his intake of breath, "I will give it a chance Kyoya. I don't know that my feelings are as strong as yours are, but I know that I have feelings for you. So, the answer is yes, Kyoya," she smiled up at him and he looked like a fish opening and closing his mouth. She laughed at his reaction and he knew he must look shell shocked. He had not expected her answer so soon, but it made him happy none the less.

He leaned down and gave her a small kiss on her lips. He hoped that Mori-senpai would understand that he had to tell her and ask her. He had to take the chance because after yesterday he was so afraid of losing her. He needed to try to be with her. He hoped that the tall man could forgive him and know that the last thing he wanted to do was hurt another friend, but he had to take his chance. "Thank you Haruhi. I love you," he spoke quietly to her while holding her hand.

She looked up into Kyoya's eyes and nodded. She was suddenly very tired and closed her eyes to sleep some more. He held her hand and sat by her side watching over her as she slept.

**A/N: Well what do you think? Will Mori forgive Kyoya? What will happen next? Is this the end of the story? Let me know what you think. Happy reading. **


	18. Love Finds A Way

Disclaimer…. I don't own OHSHC, but I do use the characters for my fan fic! LOL. If I owned, she would probably have ended up with Mori or Kyoya and not Tamaki. LOL.

Chapter 18 – Love Finds a Way

Kyoya laid his head down on the bed and fell asleep holding Haruhi's hand. Despite his surroundings, he was peaceful for a change. The weight he felt had lifted and he was comforted by knowing Haruhi was his now. He had a passing thought that maybe he loved her so much because of his idea of her, but brushed it away. He knew the real Haruhi and she knew him and that was one of the many reasons he loved her.

He woke up to people talking quietly around him. When he lifted his head, he saw all of the hosts in the room talking to a very awake Haruhi. He still held her hand and when he lifted himself off of the bed, she gave him a small smile. He looked closely at her and noticed a bit of sadness in her eyes and wondered at it. He looked around the room and saw Tamaki and Mori-senpai watching him. The look in the taller man's eyes was enough for him to know that he knew the truth of him and Haruhi. Tamaki looked happy and yet, at the same time, there was sadness about him also. It was as if even though, he knew they were not meant to be, a part of him still loved her and wanted her. His heart was heavy looking at his friends. Although he got what he wanted, he hurt his friends. He knew there was no way to avoid it.

Mori looked upon Haruhi and Kyoya and knew he had lost her once again. He was too late. He held himself back and now he paid for it. His heart was breaking all over again, but if she was happy, he would be happy for her. Kyoya was a good man and he deserved happiness. He hadn't had much of it in his life, and Mori was trying to be supportive of the new couple.

Hunny knew his cousin was sad, but was trying not to let it show. He loved Haruhi more than anything else in his life, but he had lost her again. Knowing this time she had been in his grasp and still slipped through his fingers because he wanted to give her time, it was not sitting well with him. He would still be there for her and he would still be her friend, but that did not mean it was not hard for him to be there. Hunny knew Mori would need him now more than before. He only hoped that his cousin would be able to move on with his life and find someone that would love him as much as he could love her.

The twins felt the heaviness in the air and decided it was time to lighten the mood. It was time for Haruhi to have a reunion with her twin sisters. Hikaru elbowed Kaoru and gave him a nod. It was time to put plans into action. "Hikaru, would you like to get a drink?" Kaoru asked his brother. "Why, yes Kaoru that sounds really good." Hikaru responded. Together they said, "Well let's be off then."

The group looked at the red heads with suspicion, but did not stop them. They were curious as to what they were up to and hoped that they were not going to cause too many problems. Kyoya wondered if he should have the police on standby.

"What do you think they are going to do? Do I need to have a cage around me right now?" Haruhi asked the group in general.

"I have no idea, but knowing them, it may be wise to have you in solitary so that they cannot reach you," Kyoya responded watching the door.

Mori nodded his head in agreement. He moved closer to the bed as did Hunny. They were ready for anything. Tamaki sat in his chair by the window wondering what he could do. Hunny and Mori were better off handling protection detail but he felt like he should do something also. Hunny solved the problem for him, "Tama-Chan just stay where you are. If we need help, we will let you know." Tamaki nodded and sat back.

Ranka came back in the room after everyone had set up their strategic positions. He looked around the room and raised his eye brows. "Where did Hikaru and Kaoru go? They were sneaking down the hall and ran for it when they saw me."

"We have no idea Ranka-chan. They walked out of the room and said they were going to go get something to drink. I really don't think that is where they were going though. Don't worry, we got Haru-Chan," Hunny-senpai said seriously. For someone that was so cute, he could look really scary. Ranka just gave a small smile and went to the table to sit down. He wanted away from the action in case fists started flying.

Forty minutes later, everyone found out what the twins were up to and had a good laugh. Hikaru and Kaoru entered the room once again in full drag. Haruhi's twin sisters had come for a visit, the Hitachiin sisters. It had been a while since Haruhi had seen her group of sisters, and now two of them appeared.

When the twins walked in dressed in the dresses that they had worn for the battle with Lobelia, and everyone laughed. They looked just like they had that day over a year before. How they had snuck the costumes out of the club room, no one knew, but the reaction was worth it. The atmosphere in the air lightened and everyone seemed to be having a good time teasing the twins about their new outfits, split personalities if you will.

"What are you goofballs doing?" Haruhi asked laughing. She was trying not to laugh too much because it hurt when she did, but she couldn't help herself.

"What us?" Hikaru asked in a fake female voice.

"We just thought that you might want a visit from your sisters," Kaoru answered her question.

"Did you miss us?" They finished together.

The fake voices and the answers caused another round of laughing.

"Yah, I did. It is always good to have a visit from my sisters," she was giggling, "but where are my other sisters?" She turned to the other hosts and winked.

"Forever gone away!" Kyoya replied laughing. Everyone else nodded in agreement and the laughing started again.

"Awe, and here I was hoping for a repeat performance from everyone," she gave a fake pout. That caused everyone to laugh at her some more.

The twins were on point when they decided to have some fun today. It was much needed and the plan was pure idiocy and fun. Hilarity ensued and spirits were lifted. Although Mori was still hurting and hated losing Haruhi to Kyoya, the heartbreak was acute; he still had her in his life in some form. He wanted her to be happy and if she chose Kyoya, then that is who she was meant to be with right now. He looked at Haruhi and gave her a small smile.

Haruhi looked up at the same time and saw the smile that Mori-senpai sent her. The look he gave her made her wonder for a small moment if she had been wrong about his feelings. She shook off the feeling; she knew that there was no way. She was with Kyoya now and she was happy. Right? She looked over to her boyfriend and grabbed Kyoya's hand. He squeezed it and gave it a kiss. She gave him a smiled and laid back.

There as a knock at the door and a nurse peaked in, "I am sorry, but it is time for us to clean her wound. It would probably be best if everyone waited outside."

"Haruhi, do you want me to stay? This is going to hurt," Kyoya was honest with her. It was not going to be a pleasant experience for her and if she wanted him there, he would be.

"I will be alright. Go ahead and wait outside," she gave him a little smile. Honestly she was a bit scared after he said that, but she didn't want anyone to know that. Daichi walked into the room as Kyoya was standing up. She grabbed his hand, "Wait! Actually stay." If it was going to hurt, she wanted a hand to hold.

The nurse nodded and made her way to the side with her wound. The process to scrub and clean the wound was excruciating to her. She squeezed Kyoya's hand and yelled at one point. The cleaning was needed because of the infection, but it was most definitely not a pleasant experience. She tried to cringe away from the nurse, but Kyoya stood up and held her in place. He did not let her move. After it was over with, she was crying and lying on her bed. She was in pain.

The nurse said that she would send her normal nurse in with some pain pills for her. Daichi followed the nurse out of the room to keep everyone from barging in immediately. He felt they needed a few minutes so that Haruhi could compose herself.

A couple of minutes later, the day nurse walked into the room and gave Haruhi some pain meds into her IV. Haruhi was soon knocked out from the medicine and sleeping peacefully. Kyoya let out a breath when her grip loosened on his hand. For a small woman, it felt like she might actually break the bones in his hand when her side was being cleaned.

He left her asleep and walked out of the room to let everyone know that they could go back into the room, and he could go down to get something to eat and drink before Haruhi woke up. He needed a minute to himself. It hurt him to see her go through something like that. Being her friend, it would have been hard to watch that, but knowing he loved her made it all that much harder for him to watch and experience. He was happy that he could be there for him, but it twisted his stomach to watch. "It is ok to go back in now. Be quiet though, she was given some medicine and is sleeping." As each person passed by him, they gave him a look. He knew that he probably looked a bit sick and pale, but he couldn't help it. Ranka was the last person to pass by him. The older man placed his hand on his shoulder and gave him a smile. Kyoya then watched him walk back into the room, and then turned himself down the hall. He was breathing deeply and trying to calm his racing heart. Kyoya got back to the room less than thirty minutes later and walked into everyone talking in hushed tones trying not to disturb the sleeping girl.

The doctor walked in right after him and nodded to the young Ootori. He walked up to the bed and checked her side. It was still red and a bit bloody from the wound cleaning, but it looked a lot better than it had the previous day. Another day and another cleaning and he should be able to put the stitches back in. He was not going to release her too quickly this time. He did not want to have to admit her again for her stab wound. This girl had been through a lot and he wanted to do what he could to minimize anything further happening to her. His career would also appreciate that since Kyoya Ootori would not accept failure. He turned around and updated the men in the room about her current status and left the room.

Kyoya sat down in the seat next to the window. He felt tired and drained. Looking around the room, he could tell that everyone else felt the same way he did. She would be ok though and she would be out of the hospital in a few days. She had a lot of people that loved her and needed her in their lives.

**A/N: First, I want to say thank you again to stylewriter565 for all of her help with this story! I hope everyone is enjoying the story. It will be coming to a close soon enough, I just want to wrap everything up, get Haruhi out of the hospital and on with her life. Enjoy reading and please review. **


	19. All Better, We Hope

Chapter 19 – All Better, We hope

Before Haruhi could get her stitches back in her side to close her wound, she had to wait two more days and have three more cleansings. She was sick of the hospital and what she called torture and was more than ready to leave. Everyone around her was made aware of her feelings and although they felt bad for her, this new side of Haruhi was a funny sight to see. Oh they had seen her yell and get onto people before, but they had never seen her attack people just because they were in the general vicinity of her. Kyoya and her dad got it the worst. Of course, it was funny until she turned everything onto you as her next victim. Only two people seemed to not shrink from her wrath, Hunny and Mori.

"If you touch me and tell me it will be ok and I will be out soon one more time, I will not be responsible for how the IV pole is used on you or where it may end up," she seethed Monday afternoon. Kyoya backed away from his angry girlfriend. Her father was at work and they were waiting for the docs to stitch her up again. She would not be able to go home until at least Wednesday barring any further problems.

"Fine, I will just leave you alone then," Kyoya mumbled trying to stay patient with her and reminding himself that she is just tired of being in the hospital and in bed. He walked over to the side of the room where Mori-senpai and Hunny-senpai were reading and eating cake, "I am going to go get some coffee. Do either of you want anything?" Both shook their head no and Kyoya walked out the door.

"Haru-Chan, don't be so hard on Kyo-chan. He is just trying to help you feel better. Ok?" Hunny walked up to the bed with a cake offering, "Do you want some cake or some strawberries?"

She let out a big breath, "I know Hunny-senpai and I don't mean to yell at him, I guess I am just irritated and ready to be out of this bed and since he was here I took it out on him. I feel really bad."

"We know. You will be out of here soon enough, but I guess you must be feeling better to let everyone have it," Hunny laughed.

Haruhi smirked, "I guess you're right." The three occupants looked at each other smiled and then Hunny and Haruhi started laughing. She had to stop quickly because it still hurt her a bit to laugh too much, but she felt better.

The doctor came into the room at that moment and smiled at the seeming carefree innocence of the group in the room. It was good to be able to laugh after everything they had gone through. "Well Haruhi, are you ready to get some stitches?" The doctor asked looked at her side. The infection had been cleared and her white cell counts in her blood were back to normal. "And while we are in there, we will go ahead and take out the stitches on your cheek." Haruhi smiled and nodded. "Excellent, I will get them to wheel you to a treatment room and we will get you taken care of." He gave her a small smile and stepped out of the room to get everything ready. A nurse came in a few minutes later to get her and take her to the treatment room.

Daichi went with them to make sure everything was safe. The staff was used to her guard being around, but it still unsettled them at times. They were afraid to do anything that would look unfavorably in Ootori eyes and this guard was the eyes and ears of Ootori if he was not there himself. Haruhi was stitched up and back in her room in less than an hour. The stitches from her face were removed and she had a faint pink scar on her face that would fade with a little time.

When Haruhi got back to the room she noticed a couple of things: first Mori-senpai was not in the room, but Hunny-senpai was and second Kyoya was still not back from getting coffee. "Where is Mori-senpai?"

"He went to make a call and check on Kyo-Chan," Hunny said looking up from his latest slice of cake. "How do you feel Haru-Chan?"

"I am fine. They numbed me really well before they put the stitches in and look, no more stitches on my face," she said smiling at her friend.

Hunny walked up to her and looked at the scar on her face. It had healed up nicely and when it finishes, you would barely be able to see the scar if at all. The plastic surgeon Kyoya had called was really good. "That is awesome! We should celebrate with cake!"

"How about you eat cake and then I will eat the strawberries," she said with a small smile on her face. She loved how excited her senpai got over everything, but she did not want cake right now. Mori-senpai had brought strawberries for her and she was ready to eat them.

Mori had called Kyoya when he still had not made his way back to the room after 45 minutes. He was not sure if the younger man even knew if Haruhi had been taken to get her stitches. When Kyoya answered he was at the café on the first floor of the hospital and Mori went to find him. Something felt wrong. "Kyoya," was all he said when he saw the man sitting at a table drinking some coffee.

"Please have a seat Mori-senpai. Do you want some coffee or something?" Kyoya asked.

"No. Doctor came for Haruhi and she is getting her stitches."

"Good. Hopefully soon she can get out of the hospital and go home. I think she will feel a lot better in her own house than she would here."

"What's wrong?" He asked simply.

"Sempai, what makes you think something is wrong?"

Mori gave him a raised eye brow and a look that asked if he was truly serious about that question.

"I guess out of everyone, you would be the one to notice when something is off," Kyoya said with a sad smile. "I think the last week is just wearing on me and Haruhi has been in a bad mood because she has to just lay there."

Mori looked at him and nodded. He knew he couldn't' be easy to have your girlfriend jump down your throat, but that didn't seem like that was all of it, "And?"

Kyoya looked up with surprise at Mori. His senpai was the most observant man he had ever met. He also knew that not much got past the man, but he didn't figure that he would not accept his words as the full reason for his feeling off balance. He blinked a few times and then let out a sigh, "My father came in last night after everyone had left. He asked to speak to me. He knows that Haruhi and I are together, but he would still like for me to meet with a girl he wants me to consider for a bride. He said he will not force her on me and if I choose Haruhi then he will accept it, but the girl is the daughter of a prominent surgeon who owns patents on different things he has developed for the medical field."

Mori was shocked. Was Kyoya really considering this? He couldn't. Haruhi was too important to him, he loved her too much; but he also knew that Kyoya was trying to be his father's heir and would do almost anything to get that position. "What are you going to do?"

"I have to at least meet her and I am not looking forward to that. The dinner is tonight. I have been trying to figure out a way to tell Haruhi and her not get upset. She has had such a short temper the last couple of days that I was afraid. I know Kyoya Ootori doesn't get afraid, but she is the one thing that can scare me."

The taller man looked at the man seated across from him and he looked almost dejected. He didn't like seeing Kyoya like this. It may have hurt that he won Haruhi, but she wanted him and that made Mori ok with it all. Kyoya was also his friend and it was hard to see someone like Kyoya look as he was right now. "You have to tell her, but make sure you explain it all to her. She is logical like you are and will understand." Haruhi always approached things as if they were a problem to solve. She was brilliant and he had the feeling that if Kyoya were to explain, she would understand. It would also give them a break from each other. Kyoya needed to get out of the hospital for some fresh air at some point.

Kyoya nodded to Mori and stood up, "You're right. Thank you Mori."

Both men walked up to the room together. When they got there, Hunny and Haruhi were playing cards and it looked as if Hunny was winning. Both men smiled at the sight and Kyoya sat down next to her bed to watch the game wrap up.

"Hunny-senpai, are you cheating? There is no way someone is just dealt three aces at the beginning of the game," Haruhi said looking at the blonde sitting on her bed.

"Haru-Chan, how could you say that?" Hunny asked shocked. He really wasn't. He knew how to deal the cards to get him what he wanted. He just didn't think he would be busted, but then again this was Haruhi. He wasn't doing it to be malicious; he was having fun with her.

"Mitsukuni," Mori said.

"Damn busted! Ok, Haru-Chan, I was messing with you," he said trying to look cute and innocent.

She laughed at the act he was putting on. She knew that he was doing something and he was found out. "It's ok Hunny-senpai, I was having fun, but I knew you were cheating. No more card games with you unless someone else deals," she was laughing a little as she said that.

"Ok Haru-chan. Takashi says the same thing to me, but his brother was the one that taught me that trick." Hunny was laughing too.

"Come on Mitsukuni. Let's go for a walk." Mori told his cousin. He watched as Hunny jumped up and grabbed Usa-Chan and walked out the door. He followed and shut the door behind him.

"What's going on Takashi?" Hunny asked.

"Kyoya needs to talk to Haruhi," he said simply and watched his small cousin nod. He didn't ask what they needed to talk about or try to pry. They started to walk down the hall together with no real destination in mind. They were trying to give the two a little bit of space and time.

"Haruhi, we need to talk," Kyoya said as he looked at her.

"I know. I am sorry about earlier and how I have been this week. I didn't mean it."

"Huh? Oh, I know. It's ok. I actually need to talk to you about something else." At her nod, he told her about the conversation with his father, about the dinner, and about the girl he was to meet. When he was done, he looked at her and she had a frown on her face. He knew that look, it wasn't a frown because she was mad or upset with him or one of the other hosts, and she was sorting everything out and working it out in her head.

"I see. Ok then, but are you sure that your dad is not trying to force you to break up with me?"

"I don't believe that he is, but I will make sure that I am on guard tonight," he gave her his infamous smirk and then a small kiss. He looked at the time and he needed to go home to get ready. He was dreading tonight.

"Ok," she said with a smile when he pulled back. She watched him send a message on his phone, probably to Mori or Daichi and put it back in his pocket. A few minutes later, Mori-senpai and Hunny-senpai came back into the room with drinks for everyone. Kyoya stood up from his chair and gave her one last kiss before he left to go home.

Mori and Hunny stayed with her and soon enough her mind was completely taken off Kyoya and what tonight was for him with the arrival of Tamaki and the twins. Sometimes it was hard to form a coherent thought around those three, but that is what was needed right now. She laughed at their antics and drama. Hunny-senpai and Mori-senpai were there to keep the three buffoons away from her bed so that they wouldn't hurt her and everyone was having a good time. She laughed and smiled some more and soon found herself drifting off to sleep. Mori sat in Kyoya's chair and watched her. Hunny told everyone to quiet down because she had fallen asleep. Everyone did and sat back to have a calm and normal conversation while their Princess dreamed.

Kyoya arrived home and was not looking forward to tonight. He had a girlfriend. Someone he loved. Granted there were times this week that he questioned his decision and his sanity, but he didn't need his father butting into his love life right now. It was finally where it needed to be. He decided to treat it as a just dinner with his father's business associates and nothing more. He would not give this girl more than a passing glance and not speak to her more than necessary. He wanted to be at the hospital right now and not here, so when he finally made his way downstairs, he was in full shadow king persona.

"Ah, here he is. Kyoya this is Dr. Jiro Ito, his wife Rika Ito, and his daughter Mana. This is my youngest son Kyoya." Yoshio Ootori introduced everyone, watched his son bow and say the proper pleasantries, and then turned to Dr. Ito to finish his conversation.

"Kyoya-kun, how are you this evening?" Mana asked her host's son.

"I am well, thank you. And you?" He asked in return. He had to be polite to her even if he didn't want to be there. He had to admit that he was surprised. When he walked into the living room and saw the people that were gathered, his eyes immediately found her. There was a spark and if he didn't have Haruhi, he might have pursued it to see what it meant. He had a girlfriend though and would not do anything to jeopardize that.

"I am well, thank you." She had felt the spark to, but she did not want to be there either. She was dragged to this dinner kicking and screaming. She had other things she wanted to do than to be forced into marriage by her parents. She wanted to go to finish school and go to college, and finally medical school. She was not going to be forced into anything.

The rest of the evening passed with polite conversation and small looks. When the adults suggested the young people go for a short walk, Kyoya knew that he didn't have much of a choice. When they were out of ear shot from the "adults", Mana spoke up, "I am sorry, but I am not interested in an arranged marriage with anyone. I have too many plans to complete and I do not plan on being forced into anything with or for anyone."

Kyoya looked at the young woman that was walking beside him and smirked. He had to admire her for her bravery of speaking up to an Ootori. "I agree. I am sorry, but I have my own reasons for not wanting to enter into an arranged marriage."

She stopped and turned to him, "So we have an accord?" She stuck her hand out to be shaken and he laughed but shook her hand at the same time.

"We are agreed," he said smiling at her and turned to continue the walk. He felt relieved and something else, but he wasn't sure what that feeling was.

After the guests left, his father asked him what he thought of the young girl. He was honest, "I am not interested in an arranged marriage father. Sorry. Now, if you will excuse me, I am going to get changed and go back up to the hospital."

"No. You have been up there and with her for a week. You need a break. You can go back up there in the morning. I will hear no arguments from you about that. It is my decision," Yoshio said looking at his youngest son. He watched as Kyoya's hands made fists and then as he turned around and stormed up the stairs. He shook his head, his son hadn't argued with him, but he wanted to. He liked the honor student and thought that she would make a good wife, but he wanted to make sure that Kyoya had the best of everything and that included marriage. He also knew that if Kyoya had chosen Haruhi, there was nothing that could change his mind. His son was just like him. He didn't want to keep him from his girlfriend, but he had seen the dark circles. Kyoya needed a break and a good night's sleep. He would do that tonight if he had to lock him in his room.

Kyoya got up and went back up to the hospital the next morning at 11:00a. He had slept through his alarm and was rushing to get back to Haruhi's side. When he arrived, Ranka was just leaving and Hunny and Mori-senpai were eating brunch with her. He walked to her side and gave her a kiss on the cheek and sat down in the chair by the side of her bed.

Haruhi looked at Kyoya. Something was different. He was smiling and looked like the cat that ate the canary. "Is everything ok?"

"Everything is perfect. I am sorry I didn't come back last night or earlier today. I slept through my alarm this morning and my father made me sleep at the house last night," he responded.

"Good, you needed some sleep and a break," she said smiling at him. She didn't know if Hunny and Mori knew about what happened last night, so she decided not to ask about it. She watched him nod in response and start drinking the coffee that he had brought with him. She wasn't able to get the details about the previous night from him until later that night after everyone left. She wasn't made or upset or angry. She did find it rather funny how he was turned down by Mana before anything was even said about a relationship or marriage.

The rest of her time passed in the hospital and she was finally released on Thursday. It could not have come too soon for her since she was ready to be home. She would go back to the doctor on Wednesday to get her stitches out, but if she had any more problems, she was to report to the hospital immediately.

Hunny and Mori had gone back to school the previous day and the only host that was there with her during the day was Kyoya. She cherished the alone time with her boyfriend and was happy they got to spend that time together without the other hosts and without anyone else around. After everyone was out of school for the day was a different scenario all together since they were not alone and had a gaggle of people in her small apartment. She loved those times too though. She was surrounded by her friends and they cared. Since she was not allowed to go back to school until after she saw the doc again, she counted on her friends to be there and they did not disappoint.

Kyoya went with Haruhi on Wednesday to her doctor appointment and she was deemed healed enough to go back to school, but she had to take it easy. Her stitches were removed and she could not have been happier.

As they were leaving the doctor's office, Haruhi accidentally bumped into someone when she tripped over the decorative rug in the hall, "I am so sorry miss."

"That is quite alright. It was an accident, nothing more," she received as a response. "Kyoya-kun! I didn't expect to see you." Haruhi's eyes widened when she noticed the girl was now looking at her boyfriend and knew him.

"Mana-san, yes I am here with my girlfriend. Haruhi, this is Mana. I told you about her from that dinner. Mana-san are you alright? What are you doing here?" Kyoya said. He was uncomfortable seeing her again while in the presence of Haruhi.

"Oh yes. Hello, Mana-san. I am Haruhi. Are you ok?"

"Yes, I am fine. No need to worry. I am actually here to meet with a friend of my father's. I am hoping that he will allow me to observe him during a few operations since I want to be a neuro surgeon after I finish medical school," she replied simply.

"That is a wonderful goal Mana-san!" Haruhi said excited for the girl. "We were just about to get some lunch, would you like to join us?"

Mana declined since she still had to meet with the doctor and then was to meet with her father afterwards, but added with a smile, "Maybe some other time." That smile sent another shock to Kyoya's system. They parted ways and then went to lunch.

After lunch, Kyoya and Haruhi made their way back to her apartment. They were quiet, just enjoying each other's company. Both were lost in their thoughts.

Mori and Hunny were the first hosts to show up for the day and a text was received that both of the twins and Tamaki would not be able to come by that night for some reason or another. Haruhi did not doubt that somehow the twins caused trouble and Tamaki probably had to have dinner with his grandmother. She responded to both texts saying that she would just see them at school tomorrow.

She was antsy that afternoon. She didn't want to be cooped up. She felt like she had been inside for too long during her covalence, "Do you three want to go for a walk?"

"I have to finish up some business Haruhi," Kyoya said while working on his computer. He had neglected a lot of things while she was down and needed to finish up some things that night.

"Oh," she said a little down trodden.

"Don't worry Haru-Chan, we can let Kyo-Chan work and the rest of us can go for a walk to the park. How does that sound? Takashi?" His cousin nodded and Haruhi seemed to brighten up.

"You three have fun," Kyoya said dismissing the other teens.

Mori, Hunny, and Haruhi took their time walking to the park. Hunny saw the disappointed look on her face when Kyoya had said he needed to work, but that didn't mean that she had to stay there when he couldn't come. He smiled at his two companions and then took off running ahead of them. He was a ball of energy.

Mori stayed by Haruhi's side while they walked to the park and then followed her as she made her way to the swing set Mitsukuni seemed to have claimed. She sat down in one of the swings and relaxed a bit. He watched her closely. He didn't want her to tire herself out. She would be tired enough after school the next day and she just got her stitches out. He over to his cousin and saw him jump off of the swing quickly. Mori tensed up, but then relaxed when Mitsukuni yelled out ice cream and he saw the ice cream vendor getting close. His cousin took off at a run and returned shortly with ice cream for all three of them.

Haruhi had a wonderful time at the park with her two friends. She always knew that she could be herself around them and she could relax. Her guards were always down around them and she just enjoyed being around them. She looked over to Mori as they were walking home and studied him for a minute. He was so different from Kyoya. If he had had feelings for her and confessed, she was not sure how she would have chosen between the two. She still felt torn, but she was with Kyoya now and everything was going well for them.

She was so wrapped up in her thoughts; she was not paying attention to where she was walking. She tripped on an uneven part of the sidewalk and went flying forward. She never hit the ground though because she felt strong arms wrap around her and catch her. "Thank you Mori-senpai," she said shakily as she looked up into his face. Her breath caught and she could not look away. She heard Hunny yell for her and the honk of a horn and she snapped out of it. She looked at Hunny and said she was alright and they started to walk back to the apartment. Kyoya was still working when they got back. She shook her head at him and then asked the three what they wanted for dinner.

"Let's go out to dinner to celebrate no more stitches and you going back to school Haru-Chan!" Hunny said excitedly. He had seen the moment she shared with his cousin and wondered if she was with the person that she really needed to be with.

**A/N: Thank you for all of your reviews. I promise to have the story finished before I leave for vaca since I will not be posting while gone.** **Happy reading and please review! Thank you!**


	20. Minds Are Made Up

Chapter 20 – Minds Are Made Up

Dinner was amazing. They went to a new restaurant and although Haruhi hated going to the richer restaurants that she could not afford, she decided once they got there to have a good time and enjoy it. The food was amazing and she got stuffed. Her three escorts enjoyed themselves watching her enjoy the dinner and the company they offered.

Too soon dinner came to a close and they found themselves in a limo driving back to her apartment. Mori and Hunny dropped Kyoya and Haruhi off in the parking lot and then headed for their houses. On the way home, Hunny noticed that his quiet cousin seemed to be lost to his thoughts. This was confirmed when he called his name and did not receive a response.

"Takashi!" He said louder this time and shaking his arm. The tall man seemed to shake himself out of his thoughts and looked down. "Takashi is everything ok? You seem distracted right now."

Mori patted his cousin's head and gave him a smile, "Yah, I was just thinking." He turned from Mitsukuni and looked out his window once again lost to his thoughts.

Hunny watched him for a little bit longer and decided he needed to do something. He wasn't sure what it was, but something had to be done. The limo pulled up to his house and he got out saying good night to Mori. He was thinking about what he should do.

Mori was just thinking about deep brown eyes that he could lose himself in and he did earlier today. If it had not been for his cousin and that car, he might have committed the unforgivable and kiss her. He decided that he just needed a break. He was happy for the couple, but he has had too much Haruhi time. He would skip visiting her for a couple of days and tell her that he was busy. That should solve his problem.

Back at Haruhi's apartment, she was making tea while Kyoya was working again. She had gotten so used to his time, that she forgot how much he actually worked. He had worked some during her stay in the hospital, but it was never constant and he always seemed to give her time. Today he was playing catch up. She smiled at him working on his laptop and thought, "One of the things that makes him Kyoya is his work ethic and his incessant typing." She went back to the stove to pour the hot water over the tea leaves and finish up the tea. She brought the tea pot and two cups into the living room and sat down next to her boyfriend.

Haruhi sat there and thought about things. If someone had told her a month ago that she would be dating Kyoya Ootori, infamous shadow king of the host club, she would have laughed in their faces. Yes, she cared for him and considered him one of her best friends, but she never thought Kyoya would look at her as more than a friend. Of course at the beginning of this journey with the club, she would never have believed that she would have dated Tamaki since he probably got on her nerves the most at the start, but here she was sitting next to Kyoya in her living room and Tamaki was her ex. It was funny how life worked sometimes and she had a feeling the ride was far from over.

Kyoya stayed again that night just to make sure she was ok. Her dad was pulling a late shift at the bar and would not be home until the wee hours of the morning. Kyoya didn't want her staying alone that night, plus he had gotten used to being there. He told himself one more night and then he would return home at night. He knew that she would be safe because he still had Daichi watching her and true to their word, the Tanaka family did nothing in retaliation and publically disowned Akio. She would be safe going forward, he could ask for no more than that.

When he finally closed his eyes and drifted to sleep he dreamt of her in a meadow surrounded by flowers laughing. Then she twirled around in circles and turned into Mana Ito. He woke up suddenly breathing hard. He got up and got a drink of water and then went back to bed and to sleep. When next he awoke it was to Haruhi trying to gently wake the sleeping beast and he did not remember dreaming any more after that first time.

Kyoya hated getting up in the morning, but at least she let him sleep a little bit longer before she forced him to get up and face the light of the day. As it was, she was making him get up earlier for school than he normally did. Where she liked to be extra early to review notes, he just liked to be early enough to make sure he was on time and not rushing. Of course, the fact that she normally had to catch the train and walk part of the way was another reason she got up earlier than him, but today she had a ride to school and didn't have to worry about rushing around. She was excited about going back to school and for that reason, he did not argue with her when she woke him up to get ready so that they could arrive at school earlier than his norm.

On the drive to school, Kyoya was grumbling about being woken up at the butt crack of dawn and Haruhi was internally laughing at him. "Kyoya, what are you going to do when you graduate and enter into the real world? I am sure you will be the heir, and therefore have to be able to get to the office early. Most people work starting between 7 and 8." She was trying not to laugh in his face, but it was really hard with the look he was giving her and his mumbling.

"As you can see, I can get up; I just don't like to get up early. Ergo I will be fine once I enter what you call the real world. Oh and before I forget, write out your grocery list and give it to me. I know that it will be hard for you to go after school today and tomorrow, so I will make sure it gets done," he sounded like he was talking to a child.

She couldn't help it, she laughed and he did not look like he enjoyed her laughter or appreciated it. "I'm sorry Kyoya. I know you can wake up early, I will just feel sorry for the secretary and anyone that comes in contact with you first thing in the morning. And I will write out the list when we get to school."

"You are not amusing," Kyoya grumbled.

"Awe, here I thought I was. Isn't that why you are with me, my fabulous wit and sense of humor?" Haruhi was in a good mood and she was having fun teasing Kyoya again.

"Hardly," was all he said before he leaned his head back on the limo seat and closed his eyes. She watched him for a couple of minutes before she turned her attention to the scenery outside. She knew he was not a morning person and this solidified his adversity to mornings in her mind. He truly was the low blood pressure demon lord.

They pulled up to the school over an hour and a half early. Kyoya was not happy, but he stopped grumbling when he saw the happiness on her face. She hated being forced out of school for the past couple of weeks, so was excited to be back at Ouran and amongst her fellow students. She had a goal to achieve and no one was going to stop her, not even a stab wound to the side. He admired her for her tenacity the last few weeks. He knew that it probably hadn't been easy for her but she pushed through and made the best of it (well except for when she was bedridden and in the hospital; that was torture for everyone).

He walked her to her classroom and then sat in there with her until Hikaru and Kaoru arrived. He was pushed out of the way when they made their entrance, so he took his leave and walked to his own classroom. He could not get the dream out of his head and was not paying attention to where he was going and therefore did not see the door a couple of feet in front of him and the person coming out of the door. "Oof! I am sorry; I was not watching where I was going." Kyoya looked at the person he ran into the wall and gasp. It was the other woman from his dream, Mana Ito.

"Well it seems that we keep running into each other. How is it that we have gone to the same school for the past year and only now I keep running into you?"

"I apologize. Actually up until about two months ago, I was studying abroad in Boston. The whole host club was. We actually cut our year short over there so that Tamaki and I could graduate with our class here. We felt it was only right to graduate from Ouran instead of the school in Boston."

"Oh that's right. I remember the prank you pulled on the second year twins a couple of weeks ago. I did not associate that with you."

"Yes, I am the vice president of the club and that was a group effort by the majority of the members so to speak. The twins are known for their jokes, so we decided to pull a prank on them. It was quite successful. Unfortunately the day of the prank, the club closed for a couple of weeks due to unforeseen circumstances, but will re-open today."

"I see. How is your girlfriend? I heard that the reason that the club was closed was due to an injury sustained by her."

"Yes, it was. She is doing well and I have actually just left her in her classroom. What year are you?"

"I am actually only a second year. I think it is the same grade as her and the twins. Maybe I will come to check out your club today. I must go now."

"Yes, it is the same year. Please feel free to stop by any time the club is open. Good-bye." He bowed and started to walk off towards the direction of his class once again. The exchange he just had fresh on his mind. He was not sure why he would think of her, but he would do what it took to forget about her. He had Haruhi, he was happy.

"Haru-Chan, can I talk to you for a quick second?" Hunny-senpai poked his head into Haruhi's classroom.

"Hunny-senpai?" The three second year hosts said at the same time. Haruhi shook her head and laughed. She was spending too much time with the twins. "Um sure senpai." Haruhi got up from her desk and walked out of the classroom leaving two confused looking twins behind.

When they got to an empty room that was not being used, Hunny opened the door for her to enter. She walked in and turned around to look at him, "Shouldn't you be at University right now? Where is Mori-senpai? Is everything alright?"

He laughed at the barrage of questions she was throwing at him and the befuddled look she had on her face. "Yes, I should be, but I am skipping my first class of the morning because I wanted to check on you and make sure you were ok. It is your first day back after almost two weeks of being gone. Takashi is probably on his way to school right now. I told him I had an appointment and for him to go on without me."

"I am alright, a little nervous about being back at school finally, but excited and happy to be back also. Why did you want to come alone?"

"I wanted to ask you a question and I don't want you to tell Takashi, Kyoya, or anyone else. And I don't want you to get mad at me either. Can you do that for me Haru-Chan?" He pleaded with her.

"Yes, I can do that for you Hunny-senpai and I promise not to get mad," she smiled at him chuckling at how he always tried to play the cute card when he wanted something to go his way.

"Ok," he said. She watched him pace a couple of times and noticed he looked really nervous. She wondered how bad this was going to be and then he spoke, "Haru-Chan do you have feelings for more than just Kyo-Chan?"

"Wh-What do you mean?"

"I saw what happened yesterday and I was just wondering if you had feelings for Takashi also."

She looked at the floor blushing. "I don't think I should answer that Hunny-sempai."

"I won't tell anyone, I promise. Do you?" He knew the answer to his question by her reaction, but he wanted to hear the words from her.

"I can't answer that right now Senpai. I'm sorry. Thank you for checking on me, now I have to go back to class. Will I see you and Mori-senpai this afternoon?"

"Takashi said he had something to do this afternoon, so it will be just me. I will come over to your apartment after class since this is my late day. Ok?"

She gave him a small smile and then walked out of the classroom. She walked to the restroom instead of to class. She needed to calm down. Hunny-senpai had unsettled her and she needed to breathe and maybe splash some water on her face. She went back to class after that and sat down between the twins.

"Haruhi, what did Hunny-senpai want?" Hikaru asked.

"He was just checking on me. He wanted to be sure I was ok and wasn't rushing my return," she told them. It wasn't a lie, but she wasn't about to tell them the rest of the conversation. It didn't matter what her feelings were, they were not returned on that front, so she was with someone that did return her feelings.

The day passed quickly and Haruhi made her way to the 3rd music room for host club. It had been closed since she had been stabbed, but it was to be opened today. As she was walking through the hallway, she started to come upon the door to the ladies room where she was stabbed. The closer she got to it, the more panic she felt.

Daichi was following her and saw her slow down and start to look to the side. He knew what she was looking at and knew that this was the first time since the attack that she had been here. He watched her carefully and if he needed to, he would carry her to the music room. He heard her breathing get heavier and more panicked. Her eyes were glued to the door and then she weaved to the side and had to catch herself on the wall across from the room. He walked up to her and swung her in his arms. She screamed. Her eyes were squeezed shut and she was crying. "It's alright Haruhi, it's only me. Its Daichi," he said trying to calm her down.

She opened her eyes and looked up at her body guard, "Daichi?"

"Yah, it's me. Don't worry, I've got you and you will be alright," he said softly. He saw her nod and look down at her hands. She was still crying, but at least she wasn't screaming. He looked up when he heard voices and quick footsteps in front of them, the four members of the host club present today were hurrying their way.

"What happened?" Kyoya asked.

"She passed by the restroom she was attacked in and had a panic attack. She will be fine," Daichi explained. He put her in Kyoya's arms and followed the four men into the music room.

Kyoya placed her on one of the couches and asked one of the twins to get her some tea. She was still crying and he didn't know how to help her. So he sat there and held her, whispering that she would be alright. Surprisingly, neither Hikaru nor Tamaki tried to say anything. They were eerily quiet. He looked at them with an eye brow lifted asking the silent question.

"When I heard her scream, I was so afraid and when I saw her in his arms, I thought I had died. We will be fine," Tamaki's voice shook. He was freaked out.

Kyoya nodded and noticed Kaoru coming towards them with a cup of tea in his hand. "Are you ok Haruhi?" The younger twin asked his friend.

She sniffled and looked up, "Yah, I will be fine. It is stupid really. I know I am ok and yet a stupid room made me panic."

"It's not stupid Haruhi! It is ok that you got scared. I would have too! You are a brave woman my daughter!" Tamaki yelled.

"A lot happened that day and it was scary. It is understandable that you would react the way you did. It was the first time that you had seen that room since you were stabbed," Kyoya said calmly looking down at the girl in his arms.

Kaoru handed her the tea and said, "Yah, it is normal to have a panic attack when you have gone through what you have. I am surprised it didn't happen before." Tamaki hit him on the back of the head when he said that, "What?"

"Why did you have to say that?" Tamaki questioned him.

"Hey, he was only saying what we have all thought Tono," Hikaru said defending his twin.

"I never thought that! I would never thinking that my darling daughter!" Tamaki yelled.

Suddenly, everyone heard a small female laugh in the room. Haruhi was laughing at the three of them going back and forth. It was a normal occurrence, but today she found it funny. She needed that, she needed normal.

"Well, why don't you sit here and drink your tea. We will get everything read for the opening of the club. I don't want you up and about today. Just sit here and relax today. Can you do that for me?" Kyoya said to her. She nodded and he stood up. He gave assignments to the three hosts and then went to set up his table to get some work done. He knew that it would just be the four of them today, but he still needed to be able to track and monitor the club account among other things.

The club opened and they were packed. With the absence of the club for almost two weeks in addition to the prank they pulled on the twins, the club was booked to capacity for the day. Each host had to pull their weight, but true to her word, Haruhi stayed put and let the twins fetch the tea and coffee when she needed it. She looked up away from her guests and around the room when she heard a distinct laugh. She then found the source of the laughter, it was Kyoya and he was entertaining a couple of girls at the moment. She was shocked; she never thought she would see Kyoya laughing at or with guests without it sounding fake. This one sounded genuine and noticed that one of the girls looked familiar. She tried to place her, but couldn't. She turned back to her guests and gave them her attention. Daichi was sitting in her group with her just in case another one of her male customers decided they wanted to cross the line.

After the club was over and the guests had left for the day, she stayed where she was and allowed the men to do the cleaning. It was nice to relax and have some tea while the others did what she normally would. She thought, "A girl could get used to this." She stretched and her side pulled a bit. She immediately put her arms down and rubbed her side. That is when it hit her, she knew who the girl was, Mana, the girl she ran into the day she got her stitches out. She didn't know she went to Ouran. She wondered if Kyoya knew her from before and if he had entertained her before. "Shouldn't I feel jealousy or something?" She asked herself.

"Haruhi, are you alright?" Kyoya asked and watched as she jumped startled. He laughed at the look of surprise that he saw flutter across her features. It almost looked like she was caught doing something she wasn't supposed to.

"Huh? Yes, I am alright. I just stretched wrong and my side pulled. It is fine though," she said smiling up at him.

"Haruhi, come over to Daddy's house today so that we can spend some quality time together. I will even let you bring your boyfriend and body guard with you," Tamaki begged.

"Her body guard would go with her regardless. You cannot control that baka!" Kyoya growled.

"Sorry, Tamaki, but I have to get home and do a couple of things. Plus it has been a long day, I am tired. And before you ask, no you cannot come over to my apartment," she said blandly to him.

"Mommy, tell daughter that we need to spend time together," he demanded of Kyoya.

"No. You heard her, she has things to do and she cannot mess with you this afternoon. She will see you at school tomorrow," Kyoya said.

"We can come over though, can't we Haruhi?" The twins asked in unison.

"No. If he can't, you can't," she said.

"But Haruhi…" Hikaru started.

"Hikaru, Kaoru, she said no. Accept it and move on. She will see you tomorrow," Kyoya said before they could try to convince her.

She smiled at Kyoya and mouthed her thanks. Then she started to gather her things.

"Wait, does he get to come over today?" Kaoru asked Haruhi about Kyoya.

"If he wants to, he can. He is not annoying and will stay out of my way. Plus, he is my boyfriend, it would be bad if I tell him no."

Kyoya grabbed her bag from her and put his arm around her waist to lead her out the door and to his waiting limo. He looked back before he walked out of the room and smirked to the stunned faces behind him and then continued walking.

They got into the limo and Haruhi asked Kyoya what had been on her mind since she heard him laugh, "Kyoya I didn't know Mana went to this school. Have you hosted her before?"

"No, I didn't realize that she did. She is in class 2B and today was her first day in the club. I ran into her earlier and she said that she might attend. I didn't expect her to show up, but apparently one of her friends wanted to come so she decided to check it out."

"Oh, that's nice. I was kind of surprised that you laughed so loudly while hosting them."

"Yes, well they told a funny story."

She looked at him; he had turned on his computer and clicking the keys. "Always working. Even if he is not marrying her, he has to stay on good terms for business sake," she thought to herself.

Just as they got to her apartment and shut the door, there was a knock. She wondered if Tamaki or the twins took it upon themselves to show up regardless of what they said. Kyoya decided to answer it for her so he could send them away if it was. When the door opened, it revealed a blonde, but it was Hunny-senpai with a box of cake and a smile. Haruhi looked at Hunny-senpai walking through the door and although it brought back the conversation of this morning and the blush with it, she laughed. She was fully expecting one of the three idiots to show up and completely forgot that she had invited him over after school.

Kyoya watched Hunny-senpai walk in the door, but noticed he was lacking an accessory, a very large, very tall accessory. He looked outside of the door and up and down the outside hall, but Mori-senpai was not there. Haruhi and Hunny were watching Kyoya look for Mori and started to laugh. "Hunny-senpai, where is Mori-senpai?" Kyoya asked when he heard the laughter and could not find him.

"He had something to take care of Kyo-chan. He will actually be busy for a few days," Hunny said looking between the two. He wanted to see Haruhi's reaction, but since Kyoya was the one that asked, he didn't want to make it look like he was concentrating on the female. Kyoya just nodded at his announcement and carried his and Haruhi's bags to the living room. Haruhi looked bothered and confused by what he said. Inwardly he thought, "Just more proof."

"Why don't you go and join Kyoya and I will make us some tea." She walked towards the stove and Hunny walked into the living room.

Haruhi made the tea and grabbed some plates and brought everything into the living room on a tray. It seemed odd to have Hunny there without Mori, but if he had things to take care of then it could not be helped.

That night, with the help of Kyoya sending someone to the store for her, she was able to cook dinner for her two friends. It felt good to cook dinner again and she didn't realize how much she had missed it until she was standing at the stove making the meal.

After dinner, both Kyoya and Hunny said their good-byes. She got a kiss from Kyoya and a hug from Hunny-senpai and they were off. The apartment seemed so quiet without anyone there with her. She decided not to think about it and get to work on her homework. She didn't have much since she had already done some of the assignments while she had been out, but she still needed to study. She needed to stay ahead in her class and slacking now was not an option. She pulled out her books and notes from her bag and got to work.

Friday morning she walked out of her apartment ready to go to the train with Daichi in tow, she saw a car waiting for her. Apparently, Kyoya was sticking with the original plan of her getting a ride every morning. She was going to be spoiled and it would be hard to go back to the crowded train if she let this go on for any long period of time. She opened the door and found the limo empty except for some roses and a note:

_Sorry I am not there with you right now, but know that I am thinking of you. Enjoy the ride to school and I will see you later there. Love, Kyoya_

She smelled the roses and smiled. He was a sweet man when he wanted to be. She laughed to herself; he could also be an ass when he wanted to be.

When she and Daichi arrived at the school, she first went to the music room to put the roses in water. After that was done, they made their way to her first period class. They had taken a back way up to the music room and thereby avoiding that bathroom. She wasn't ready yet. Maybe one day she could face it, but not right now.

The rest of the school day passed and she did not see Kyoya all day. She figured she was busy and would see him at Host Club. She arrived a few minutes early and saw him typing away and Hunny-senpai alone at his normal table. She walked over to Kyoya and gave him a kiss on the cheek and said thank you for the roses and the ride. He gave her a smile and turned back to his computer. She put her stuff down in the back room and then walked over to Hunny's table, "Hunny-senpai, where is Mori-senpai?"

"Hi Haru-Chan! I told you he had stuff to take care of and would be busy," Hunny looked at her like she had lost her mind.

She scowled at this, "Oh, I thought you meant after club he would be busy. He will be missed." She felt sadness of not seeing the stoic Mori again today. She went to the kitchen and started getting everything ready for club.

Club seemed fine, but to Haruhi something was missing. She knew what it was but couldn't voice it. She looked over at Hunny and although he seemed happy and carefree like normal, his eyes showed that he also missed his cousin. She looked over at Kyoya and noticed the same girls from yesterday were once again at his table. He was smiling a genuine smile at Mana and wondered why it didn't bother her more.

After club was over, she walked over to Kyoya's table. "Kyoya are you coming over today?"

He looked up from his computer surprised to see her standing there. He had not heard her walk up, "Sorry, not today. I have to finish up some work and then I have a couple of things to take care of. I don't want you walking or taking the train though. I will call a car for you." He was about to pull out his phone when Hunny walked up and offered Haruhi a ride home. She readily accepted the offer and went to the back to get her things.

"Kyo-Chan, I think you have some decisions to make," Hunny said softly to the younger man.

"What do you mean Senpai?" Kyoya asked looking startled.

"I think you do. Haruhi noticed your customers today and your interaction with them also."

Kyoya was about to respond, but Haruhi came out of the back room at that time, "Ok Senpai, I am ready to go when you are."

"Give me a couple of minutes to finish my cake Haru-Chan and we can go. Ok?" He smiled at her and she nodded. She decided to get another cup of tea and sit down with Kyoya. Before Hunny walked back to his table, "Just think about everything Kyoya. I know you love Haruhi, but your interest has been caught. You need to figure out what that means before you hurt Haruhi." Hunny was serious, he gave up his nicknames and needed Kyoya to understand what he was saying. He turned after he said his piece and walked off to his table as Haruhi was walking back to Kyoya's with a cup of tea.

"Daughter, do you need a ride home today?" Tamaki asked walking up to Haruhi.

"No, Tamaki, I already have a ride," she responded.

"That's right, we are giving her a ride," the twins announced.

"No, you're not," she said.

"What? But Kyoya said he was busy, we heard him," Hikaru and Kaoru said together.

"I have arranged for her to get a ride with Hunny-senpai," Kyoya said, his tone telling them not to argue.

"Well we will all come over and keep your company my beautiful daughter!" Tamaki said excitedly.

"No, you're not. No one is coming over today. I am going to go home and take it easy. My dad should be home early today and we are going to spend some time together," Haruhi said simply.

"But we want to see you, to spend time with you," Tamaki whined.

"So? Not tonight!" She was starting to get irritated from the whining; she felt out of sorts and off today and did not want to deal with the drama. Tamaki ran to his corner and the twins walked off in a huff. She sat back and ignored the three of them and waited for Hunny-senpai as she listened to Kyoya typing on his computer.

When she finally made it home, she invited Hunny in for tea, but he declined saying he had to get home. She nodded and went inside. She didn't want the three obnoxious hosts there right now, but any of the others would have done. She wasn't ready to be alone and her dad would not be home for another couple hours. Daichi was making his sweep, so it was just her. She made some tea and decided to start studying. Her mind wandered to Kyoya, Mori-senpai, and the conversation she had with Hunny-senpai. "Why does it matter?" She asked herself.

"Why does what matter?" Ranka watched his daughter jump. It wasn't often that he could catch her unaware and it appeared he had.

"Nothing dad. Sorry, I must have been spacing out. I was studying for a test next week."

He nodded and looked at his daughter. She looked tired and sad. He wondered if something was wrong and asked her. He knew that she probably wouldn't say anything, but he had to ask and when she said that it was nothing again, he decided to drop the subject for now. She got up and fixed dinner for them and they sat down and ate dinner together, but her mind was elsewhere. He just wondered where that was.

The next day, she was woken up by her cell phone ringing. "Hello?" She asked sleepily. She was jarred awake by the frantic voice on the other end. "Hunny-senpai, what was that?"

"Haru-Chan Takashi said he can't do the host club any more. He said he is too busy," Hunny received the call from his cousin that morning. He knew Takashi was doing it because he was trying to distance himself from Haruhi for a bit, but he didn't think that it was right.

"Hunny-senpai, you know as well as I do that university is a lot harder and takes up more time than high school. He also still has to do his kendo. He probably had to drop something and unfortunately it was the club. You will still see him all of the time and we will see him sometimes when we get together outside of the club," she was trying to calm Hunny down, but anxiety was growing in her own chest at not being able to see Mori. Just then she heard a beep and she had another call coming in, "Hold on a second Hunny-senpai." She clicked over to the other caller, "Hello?"

"Haruhi, I am on my way over," Kyoya said simply.

She figured he had heard about Mori-senpai and wanted to talk, "Ok." She clicked back over to Hunny, "Hunny-senpai, Kyoya is on his way over now. We will figure out something. Do you want to come over also and talk it out with us?"

"I am on my way Haru-Chan!" Hunny wondered how Kyoya had found out about his cousin quitting the club, but figured that Takashi probably called the vice president after he had called him.

Kyoya arrived twenty minutes later and Haruhi answered the door, "So do you have a plan to get him back? Hunny-senpai is on his way over here to talk it through with us."

He looked at her confused, "What are you talking about?"

She rolled her eyes and led him into the living room, "I am talking about Mori-senpai and the fact that he is leaving the host club. Isn't that why you are here?"

"What? When did this happen?" Kyoya's grew. He had no clue that Mori was leaving.

"This morning he called Hunny-senpai and told him. Hunny was frantic and called me. I thought that is why you were coming over. Sorry, I didn't realize you didn't know. I guess it was just a social call but you sounded serious when you said you were coming over that I assumed you were coming over to talk about Mori-senpai."

"No, I needed to talk to you about something else. Do you know why he left the club?"

"No, I assume that between school and kendo, he is probably getting too busy for the club."

"Never assume Haruhi," Kyoya said flatly like he is correcting a small child.

She hated that tone of voice. She was about to say something in retaliation, but was interrupted by a knock at the door, "That must be Hunny-senpai." She walked out of the room and came back in with Hunny-senpai in tow. The young man looked like he had been crying and was on the verge of more tears.

"Hunny-senpai, do you know why Mori-senpai is leaving the club?" Kyoya asked. He hated to assume anything, but thought it had something to do with the oblivious girl in the room.

"Yes, Kyo-Chan I do," he said quietly. He looked at Haruhi and then back at Kyoya.

Kyoya got the message. He had been right. Mori left the club because of his feelings for Haruhi.

"Well, why Hunny-senpai?" She asked. She really had no clue.

"He just needed some distance Haru-Chan," Hunny said quietly.

"Distance? Distance from what? Does he not realize that he is needed and that we need him back? I thought he said he was going to protect me. How can he do that if he isn't there?" She was starting to have that panicked feeling again.

"Calm down Haruhi," Kyoya said calmly.

"Calm down? Do you not realize that we are about to lose one of our friends and we don't know why?"

Kyoya looked over to Hunny and then back to Haruhi, "We know why." She looked confused by his confession. A lot of things passed through his head in the next few seconds. He thought that when he finally got to be with Haruhi, that would be it for him. It wasn't. He thought that he would continue to feel guilty because he knew he had taken her and Mori lost his chance. He won't, at least not now. Hunny-senpai had been right, Mana caught his interest and he couldn't be with Haruhi right now. He had to figure this out, but he knew that Mori could now have his chance. He knew from her rant that she had feelings for Mori, he just hoped she would forgive him for what was about to happen. He felt bad for playing pass around the Haruhi, but it would be wrong to try to stay with her when he felt at least part of him was being pulled in a different direction. It wasn't fair to her. He took a deep breath and said, "You, you are the reason he is leaving."

She looked at both of the boys that were standing in her living room like they were crazy, "What did I do to him? He is the one that is leaving me."

"He fell in love with you Haru-Chan and it is hard for him to see you with Kyo-Chan," Hunny said sadly.

"He doesn't love me. He only wants to protect me. He felt guilty because he thinks he failed and that is why he hung around so much."

"No Haruhi, Hunny-senpai is right. Mori-senpai does love you. Hell I think except for Hunny-senpai here, all of the hosts love you to some degree, but Mori-senpai is probably the strongest of them all. He fell in love with you and lost you to me. Or at least that is what he thinks," Kyoya said

"I didn't, I didn't know," she whispered. Tears were starting to form in her eyes.

"It's true Haru-chan. He just wants you to be happy with someone you love." Tears were starting to gather in Hunny's eyes too.

"The question is not what his feelings for you are, but what are your feelings for him Haruhi?" Kyoya asked watching the tears start to fall. It still killed him to see her cry and in pain, but he had to ask.

"Why are you asking Kyoya?" Haruhi asked.

"Because that will determine what happens next," he said quietly. This hurt more than he thought it would, but it was still right. He needed to figure out what he felt for Mana and she needed realize her feelings for Mori were more than friends. He had a feeling she knew that, but never admitted it.

"What do you mean?"

"What do you feel for him and then I will explain?" He didn't want her to think that she felt things for Mori because of rebound, she had to admit her feelings first before he let her go.

"I, I love him. I have for a long time. It was always a choice between you and him since before I broke up with Tamaki. That was one of the reasons I did it. I didn't know who to pick, so when you asked I said yes. I didn't think he had any feelings for me, but watching you host the last couple of days, I realized something. I love you Kyoya, but not enough. I should be jealous of Mana and I'm not. I should be bothered when you laugh and smile at her and although part of me is, it isn't enough to tell you to stop. I'm so sorry Kyoya! I am. I am so sorry! I love you, but I love Mori-senpai more. It physically hurt when he wasn't around the last couple of, days and I found myself thinking about him and longing for him. I will understand if you hate me now. I just didn't know. I couldn't figure it out on my own."

Kyoya walked over to Haruhi and pulled her into a hug, "I don't hate you Haruhi. I love you, but I find myself wondering if it is enough. I want you safe and I would do anything to protect you, but I find myself enjoying Mana's company when we are in host club. I admire her spirit to become a doctor and not let anything stand in her way. She reminds me of you in a lot of ways, but I am drawn to her and I cannot help myself."

Haruhi was crying. "We suck at being a couple Kyoya!" She said jokingly. She pulled back and looked into his eyes, "What do we do now?"

Kyoya looked at Hunny-senpai, "Where is he?"

"He should be at his family dojo right now," Hunny answered.

"Now we move on and get you over to the dojo to talk some sense into him and to tell him how you feel. I hope you know that I do love you and I do care a lot about you. I learned a lot about myself from you and for that I am thankful." Kyoya gave her a kiss on her cheek and pulled away.

She leaned in and gave him one last kiss, "Thank you Kyoya."

The three of them ran out of the apartment, down the stairs, and flew into the waiting limo. Haruhi wondered if Mori-senpai would listen to her and if the others were right. She had to take the chance. Love was all about chances, right?

They arrived at the Morinozuka estate and the car pulled around to the back. Hunny got out of the car and helped Haruhi out also. Kyoya decided to stay behind, he didn't think his presence would help the situation at that time. He asked the driver to take him home. He would await word there on if Haruhi was successful or not.

Hunny was running to the dojo and Haruhi was trying to keep up, "Hunny-senpai, slow down." She got the words out right before she tripped. She was falling towards the ground was stopped an inch from a face plant. She then was lifted and set back on her feet. She looked behind her to her savior and found the man they were on their way to see, "Mori-senpai! Thank you!"

Mori was stunned to see Haruhi at his estate running after his cousin. He watched them run right by him and heard when Haruhi yelled for Mitsukuni to slow down, so he was close enough to catch her before she hit the ground. He nodded at her thanks and then asked, "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you Senpai and to ask you to please not leave the club!" She was feeling anxious. She needed him to stay. When she had looked behind her and had seen him, she felt a weight lift and peace enter her heart. She knew what she wanted and it was standing here with her.

"I'm sorry, I can't be in the club any longer. Good-bye Haruhi." He looked at her with longing and started to walk away.

"Senpai wait!" He kept walking. "Takashi! Please wait. Hear me out, I am begging you."

He stopped and turned around when she had used his name. It may hurt him more in the end, but he would listen to her. She sounded desperate, and he wanted to take away the tears he saw forming, but he knew that was not possible. It would be up to Kyoya to console her now. He crossed his arms and looked at her in the eyes and waited.

"I know why you are leaving the club." She saw him stiffen and she guessed that he had not wanted her to know. "And I think you should know that I have figured out a lot of things the last couple of weeks. One of the reasons I broke up with Tamaki was because I had feelings for Kyoya and you." She watched his eyes widen at her declaration and it gave her a little bit of hope. "I could never decide who I had stronger feelings for or real feelings. I figured it out though. When I saw Kyoya hosting and he was laughing and having a good time with a certain customer, it didn't bother me too much; a little, but not enough for me to say or do anything about it. When you weren't there, it hurt me. I was sad. I wanted to see your face, to hear your voice, to hold your hand, to know you were there like you always were protecting me. It physically hurt that you weren't there. Then when Hunny-senpai called me today and told me that you were leaving the host club, I felt ill and wanted to panic."

She started to walk towards him wanting to bridge the distance. "I had a panic attack at school passing by the bathroom where I was attacked and I kept thinking 'I need Mori-senpai here with me to get rid of these ghosts.' Your face is one of the first ones that I seek out when I open the door to the music room. It always has been. Even when it is a day you are not there, I look for you and then have to remind myself that you will not be there that day. I was out of sorts yesterday because you were supposed to be there and you weren't. Around you I am at peace and can be myself. More so than with any other person I know. I am saying all of this to say that I love you and I am sorry. I didn't know that you had feelings for me when I said yes to Kyoya. I don't know if things would have been different, but they can be now. If you still love me and want me, I am here." She stopped about two feet away from him. It was his move now.

They stood there staring at each other for what seemed like an eternity, but was only five minutes. Neither one moved or said anything else. Mori was scared and wondered if he was dreaming. He asked himself, "Did she really say all of that? Is she really here? I have dreamed of her being here before."

Haruhi got more panicked and scared that she had made a mistake the longer they stood there. He wasn't doing anything. She wondered if Hunny and Kyoya were wrong. She couldn't look into his eyes any longer and dropped her head. She looked at the ground and said, "I guess I was wrong, that they were wrong. I won't bother you any longer Senpai."

She started to cry again and couldn't stop the tears from falling. She turned and started to walk away when she heard her same called in a whispered voice. She stopped and turned around. Mori was right behind her. He brought both of his hands up to cup her face, "Don't go. I'm sorry. I love you too." He leaned down and kissed her with the sweetest and yet most electrifying kiss she has ever had. When he pulled back he wiped away her tears and smiled down at her. She wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face in his chest, she was home.

**A/N: I know a lot of you wanted her to end up Kyoya, but that will happen next time. I will be writing an epilogue and then this story will be put to bed. I hope you liked it and aren't too terribly disappointed by my switcheroo. I honestly didn't plan on it, but I was reminded about my time in college. I was the only girl in a group of men (not a host club, just a group of friends, LOL). I dated one of them, but we broke up and I had feelings for another guy in our group, but he never stepped up to the plate. One of the guys said that being the only girl they were close to, I would probably end up dating most of the group (never happened, but was reminded about that convo) and it made me think of this story. I hope you are enjoying the reading. Please review.**


	21. Epilogue

Disclaimer…. You know the drill. I don't own OHSHC; I just use the characters and create my own stories with them.

**A/N: Well this is the end of this story. I hope you have enjoyed it and I apologize if it seems rushed at the end. I will start writing my next story soon and as promised, the pairing will be Kyoya/Haruhi. Please let me know what you think by reviewing or sending me a message. If there is a pairing that you would like to see, let me know and I will do my best to do it justice. You have all been great. Thank you for reading and the reviews I have gotten thus far! Let's wrap this up.**

Epilogue

_About one month later – Ouran High School Graduation_

"Well how does it feel to finally say that you have graduated and are an adult now?" Hikaru asked Tamaki and Kyoya.

"Or as close to an adult as Tono is going to get." Kaoru added. Everyone in their little group laughed at the remark. "Just kidding Tono. Seriously, congratulations to both of you. First Mori-senpai and Hunny-senpai and now you two. Hikaru, they are abandoning us."

"Don't worry brother; I will be here for you. My arms will be here to hold you up and I will kiss your tears away," Hikaru said looking into his brothers eyes. Girls around them fainting and squealing.

"Will you two give it a rest? This is supposed to be Tamaki and Kyoya's day. You are not here entertaining customers," Haruhi said to the twins. She never could get used to the twincest act that they put on.

"Jealous?" Kaoru asked laughing at his friend.

"Not in the least," she smirked and looked up at the man standing at her side. She still couldn't believe that he was hers and that she had almost lost him. Takashi was one of the best things that had happened in her life and she realized after she told him her feelings that he was what she was looking for. Yes, she loved Kyoya, but it wasn't the kind she was looking for. Besides, looking at him with Mana, she knew that he was happier in that relationship than he ever would have been staying with her. She was grateful to him though, if it had not been for that relationship (as short as it was), she would have never realized what she was really searching for.

"Get a room!" The twins said together.

They always loved to give her a hard time and she didn't think that would ever change. She just got a chill. She felt Takashi's hand squeeze hers, "Haruhi are you alright?" He had seen the small shiver that ran through her.

"I'm fine. I just realized that you four are leaving me alone with those two!" Everyone stopped for a second and then started to laugh.

"Don't worry Haruhi, Daddy would never abandon you to those doppelgangers," Tamaki said as he embraced her in a giant hug.

"Tamaki," Takashi said looking down at the exuberant man hugging his girlfriend.

Tamaki looked up at the tall man and immediately let go. "Sorry Mori-senpai," he said quickly and ran behind Kyoya. When Tamaki realized that Haruhi was dating Mori-senpai, he tried to keep his hugs to a minimum. Oh he still used the family roles, but he didn't want to mess with his Senpai. He was a bit afraid of him. Everyone laughed at his antics.

"Actually Tamaki is a bit right. We are going to work out our school schedules so that we can all come to the club at least one day a week. In addition, you have the four new recruits that are starting. They will be coming with us on the host club trip before the new school year starts. So, you are not completely alone with them," Kyoya smirked, giving his evil smile to the twins which had them running for cover behind Mori-senpai.

"Are you really afraid of Kyoya you two? It was just a little look. What wimps," Mana said to the twins. She knew that people were afraid of Kyoya and they had good reason to be, but as she had gotten to know him, she found that he could be gentle and sweet, especially to her. It had taken a little bit of time, but they decided to see what was there and give dating a chance. Neither had been disappointed thus far. She found that he complimented her very well and she liked to think the same was true about her. She was falling in love with the one they called the shadow king.

Mana looked at the woman standing across from her next to the giant of a man. She knew what Kyoya had felt for her and about their relationship. She never felt jealous towards her after she and Kyoya started talking more. She had found herself a bit jealous when he was with Haruhi, but never after. She understood that the female host was a special person in each of the hosts' lives. She didn't begrudge Haruhi's space in Kyoya's heart or in his life. She understood, but she also knew that if Haruhi ever changed her mind about her feelings for Kyoya and want him back, she would have a big fight on her hands. She knew looking at her with her boyfriend though; they were made for each other. She looked over to Kyoya and smiled up at him. She was happy.

Kyoya returned the smiled that Mana had given him and leaned down and gave her a kiss on the cheek. He was happy that he had taken the chance to see what was there, because with her, he felt complete. He always felt guilty when he was with Haruhi and felt like something was missing or wrong. He never felt like that with Mana (probably because he didn't have to win her away from the other hosts). He was falling in love and he was happy.

"Kyoya it is time to go," Yoshio Ootori walked over to the group and spoke to his son. He was proud of the boy turned man and tomorrow night at his graduation party, he would make the announcement that Kyoya would be his heir. Tonight was just for family. He congratulated Tamaki and then turned to speak to Haruhi, "If Kyoya forgot to inform you, you are invited for the family dinner tonight along with Morinozuka-san."

"Yes, he informed me and we will be there. Thank you for the invitation Mr. Ootori." She bowed to the older man and he bowed back before he walked away.

"Wait! Why are they invited and not us Mommy? We are family also!" Tamaki whined from behind his best friend.

"She is invited because my father said to invite her. She is close with my family, although I am not sure how that happened, and therefore was invited. The rest of you are invited to the graduation party tomorrow," Kyoya said trying to stay patient with the baka behind him. He knew that his father appreciated Haruhi's bluntness and honesty. He genuinely liked her and if they would have stayed together, he would have accepted her. It originally surprised him when he was told to invite her, but he didn't question it because honestly besides Tamaki, she was his closest friend.

"That's not fair! That is my graduation party too! I should be invited tonight!"

"Tamaki, if I am not mistaken, you are supposed to have dinner with your father and grandmother tonight. So how can you possibly come tonight when you are indisposed?" Kyoya's annoyance was showing through.

"Oh yah! Sorry, I need to go find them. I will see all of you tomorrow at the party. Haruhi, please remember to save a dance for daddy!" He said excitedly. Then he turned to the man standing next to her, "Um if that is ok with you Mori-senpai." He received a nod in return and then walked off to find his father.

"Tono is such a baka!" The twins said in unison causing a round of laughter to work its way through the group again.

"Tama-Chan is never going to change, but that is what makes him who he is. Still it is funny when he tries to do something and then remembers that Haru-Chan is with Takashi. It is like a light goes on and he gets a new personality," Hunny-senpai said laughing at their king.

Everyone joined in the laughter again before Kyoya spoke up, "Well we have to go to. My father does not like to wait. Haruhi, Mori-senpai, we will see you tonight." Everyone said their good-byes and Kyoya and Mana left hand in hand.

"Well I guess that is it. If you guys want, let's grab the dress you made me for this dinner and I will let you help me get ready for the dinner tonight. Takashi, are you going to wear the suit you are wearing now, or are you going to change?" Haruhi asked.

"Change. I will meet you at your house after I go home. Mitsukuni, are you going with Haruhi or coming with me?" Takashi said.

"I will go with you Takashi. Haru-Chan, we will see you in a little bit. Ok?" Hunny-senpai answered.

Smiling at the blonde she said, "Ok Mitsukuni. I will see you when you get there." She gave him a hug and then turned to Takashi. She looked up at her boyfriend and gave him a small kiss when he bent down to her level. She went with the twins while Takashi and his cousin took off in a different direction.

She turned around and watched the two cousins walk off towards their limo and smiled. She was lucky. She had wonderful friends, people that cared about her, and a boyfriend that loved her and she loved back. Life was good and it was just going to get better for her (but that is another story). When she had gotten back from Boston with the rest of the host club, she wasn't sure what was going to happen to her, but she has not regretted one minute nor has she been disappointed. The host club survived her dating and breaking up with two of its members and she was dating a third. Life was full of surprises, but she knew that if they could make it through all of that, they could make it through anything and be friends (or family as Tamaki would say) for the rest of their lives. She smiled at that thought and got into the twins limo. It was a good day.


End file.
